12K in the rain

It was raining when I got up to go for my walk. It was warm, though (56.7F; 13.7C) and I wore a rain jacket for the first part but then took it off for the second part of the workout. I brought my dog, Copper, but I guess her age is starting to catch up with her. She's 9 now, and she could only keep up for 5.75k and then I had to leave her at home, along with my jacket.

I did my favorite 12K route, encompassing SugarHouse and Liberty Parks. The first half (the SugarHouse Park part) is pretty hilly, so you can't really make good time on this route, and I didn't. But I just tried to keep my heart rate at a moderate level (around 150); pushing a little, but not too hard, and that felt good. I felt great today, and my only complaint was a little soreness (quite minor) in my hamstrings. I focused on standing up straight and using my glutes more, for what that's worth.

It rained on me a lot, but it was only unpleasant at the end. It rained hard for the first 4-5k, then tapered off to a light rain. After I dropped my jacket off the rain stayed light for a few km, but by 8 km it was raining hard again, and it was raining quite hard by 10.5km. Mostly the rain was pleasant and cooling, and as a friend says "you won't melt". But by the end I was tired of it, and my feet were really wet; I wasn't cold at all though, despite the fact that I just wore shorts and a T-shirt. I was soaked to the skin and the hot shower afterward did feel good.

Total time 1:20:39 for 12k, average 6:43/k, average HR 148.

Workout data here, for my coach.