Half Marathon Training Plan

The sun’s rays just barely begin to stretch over the horizon as you make your way out the door for your morning run. Your nerves are calm; your focus is steady. Today is the day you start training for your first half marathon.

Half marathons can be daunting. 13.1 miles is a long stretch from the two-mile jog you’re starting out with on your first training day. The truth is, sometimes it’s hard for us to envision what we can accomplish when the view is blocked by the amount of hard work it will take to get there; but in the end, it will be worth it. Take a look at my 12-week training plan, and soon you’ll be crossing that finish line and crossing “half marathon” off your bucket list.

One thing to remember before you start training for a half marathon is that running a distance such as this is a lot to put on your body. According to halfmarathons.net, you should be running at least 10-15 miles per week before taking on a challenge like this.

This training plan is aimed more toward people already running between 12 and 16 miles per week (it is the training plan I compiled for myself after looking through tons of different plans). Also, the pace is everything. If you can run an eight-minute mile, don’t try to pace yourself at eight minutes throughout the run. Try for more like 10-11 minutes to make sure you can complete the run in its entirety.

	Sun.	Mon.	Tues.	Wed.	Thurs.	Fri.	Sat.
Week 1	2 miles	3 miles	Rest	2 miles	Rest	3 miles	Rest
Week 2	3 miles	3 miles	Rest	2 miles	Rest	4 miles	Rest
Week 3	3 miles	4 miles	Rest	3 miles	Rest	5 miles	Rest
Week 4	5 miles	3 miles	Rest	4 miles	Rest	6 miles	Rest
Week 5	4 miles	3 miles	Rest	5 miles	3 miles	7 miles	Rest
Week 6	4 miles	5 miles	Rest	3 miles	4 miles	7 miles	Rest
Week 7	4 miles	6 miles	Rest	4 miles	3 miles	8 miles	Rest
Week 8	4 miles	4 miles	Rest	5 miles	3 miles	9 miles	Rest
Week 9	4 miles	5 miles	Rest	4 miles	4 miles	10 miles	Rest
Week 10	5 miles	4 miles	Rest	4 miles	3 miles	11 miles	Rest
Week 11	5 miles	3 miles	Rest	4 miles	4 miles	7 miles	Rest
Week 12	4 miles	2 miles	Rest	3 miles	3 miles	13.1!	Rest

Always make sure to be eating healthy as well. The food you put into your body is essential to creating the fuel you need to power through these runs. Remember, this plan is designed for runners that run about 12-16 miles per week prior to starting training.

If you are brand new to distance running, you should check with your doctor before taking on a run this rigorous! Just stay focused; good luck!