More experienced runners and those looking to run a PB have a different obstacle to overcome. The weekly long run is essential to help overcome this. One of the biggest obstacles for beginner runners, or those new to the half marathon distance, is a lack of endurance. The purpose of the long run is to build general endurance which will help you to run further, and also help you to maintain faster paces for longer periods of time. Long runs also increase your running economy (efficiency) which ultimately helps you to run faster with less effort. The actual distance of your long run will be determined by the event you are training for (in this case a half marathon), how many years you have been running, your injury history and your actual goal for the event (i.e.

There are three half marathon specific training sessions that I recommend you adopt into your training, there is also a sneaky fourth session that I highly recommend and will be missing from almost every other half marathon training plan you will find.Ī weekly long run is an essential element of any training program. You need to do enough training to build strength and endurance, but not so much that you develop niggles or injuries which prevent you from running. It is long enough, and hard enough event to feel an enormous sense of achievement at the finish line.įor your half marathon to be a success you need to make sure you have the right training approach.

The half marathon is currently one of the fastest growing running events in the world.Īt 21.1km, it is long enough to require endurance and mental toughness, but short enough for most runners to tackle with less than a year of running experience.Ī full marathon is often more of a bucket list thing which takes months of specific preparation and ideally a few years of consistent running.Ī half marathon however is something that pretty much anyone can accomplish with a well structured 12 week training program and a strong mind on race day.

Download half marathon length