A Half marathon training plan helps you step up from a 10k event and Into a full marathon
Don’t be fooled, this will be a real test of fitness, but not so much that you will have to commit to it every minute of every day. Tempo sessions will be essential within this plan to maximise your sustainable speed alongside interval sessions in order to raise your lactate threshold. Long runs will develop your endurance, however do not fear - not every run will be long winded as a combination of short runs will flush out lactic acid from your legs.
The plan will build on a solid base slowly increasing on distance and intensity, working its way close to full distance and taper down towards the event, leaving you fresh and ready for the big race day.
| MON | TUE | WED | THU | FRI | SAT | SUN | |
| 1 | 20 minutes at level 7 | Rest | 4km fartlek, levels 5-9 | Rest | 4km at level 4 | 8km | Rest |
| 2 | 20 minutes at level 7 | Rest | 4km fartlek, levels 5-9 | Rest | 5km at level 4 | 10km | Rest |
| 3 | 25 minutes at level 7 | Rest | 5km fartlek, levels 5-9 | Rest | 6km at level 4 | 12km | Rest |
| 4 | 25 minutes at level 7 | Rest | 5km fartlek, levels 5-9 | Rest | 4km at level 4 | 10km | Rest |
| 5 | 30 minutes at level 7 | Rest | Interval session: 2k at level 6, 5 x 1 minutes at level 8-9, recovering for 3 minutes between intervals. 2k at level 6 | 17km | 6km at level 5 | 14km | Rest |
| 6 | 30 minutes at level 7 | Rest | 6km at level 4 | 20km | Rest | 10km Race | Rest |
| 7 | 35 minutes at level 7 | Rest | Interval session: 2km at level 6, 5 x 1 minute at level 8-9, recovering for 3 mintues between intervals. 2km at level 6 | 14km | 6km at level 4 | 14km | Rest |
| 8 | 35 minutes at level 7 | Rest | Interval session: 2km at level 6, 5 x 2 minutes at level 8-9 recovering for 3 minutes between intervals. 2km at level 6 | 8km | 6km at level 4 | 17km | Rest |
| 9 | 40 minutes at level 7 | Rest | Interval session: 2km at level 6, 5 x 2 minutes at level 8-9 recovering for 3 minutes between intervals. 2km at level 6 | 8km | 6km at level 4 | 20km | Rest |
| 10 | 40 minutes at level 7 | Rest | Interval session: 2km at level 6, 5 x 1 minutes at level 8-9 recovering for 3 minutes between intervals. 2km at level 6 | Rest | 5km at level 4 | 14km | Rest |
| 11 | 30 minutes at level 7 | Rest | 4km fartlek, levels 5-9 | Rest | 4km at level 4 | 8km | Rest |
| 12 | 20 minutes at level 7 | Rest | Rest | 4km at level 4 | Rest | Rest | 10km RACE |
Exertion Key
This plan is based on effort levels ranging from 1-10 and 4 levels of perceived exertion to tell you how hard you should be working.
AEROBIC exercise aims to improve the oxygen system. Aerobic means “with oxygen”, and refers to the use of oxygen in the body’s metabolic or energy-generating process. Many types of exercise are aerobic, and by definition are performed at moderate levels of intensity for extended periods of time.
ANAEROBIC exercise is intense enough to trigger anaerobic metabolism. It is used by athletes in non-endurance sports to promote strength; speed and power to build muscle mass. Muscles trained using anaerobic exercise, develop differently compared to aerobic exercise, leading to greater performance in short duration, high intensity activities, which last from mere seconds up to about 2 minutes.
DELAYED ONSET MUSCLE SORENESS (DOMS), also called muscle fever, is the pain and stiffness felt in muscles several hours to days after unaccustomed or strenuous exercise. Muscle soreness tends to be at its peak 24 to 72 hours after the exercise.
FARTLEK is a form of interval training, which puts stress on the whole aerobic energy system due to the continuous nature of the exercise. The difference between this type of training and continuous training is that the intensity or speed of the exercise varies, meaning that aerobic and anaerobic systems can be put under stress. It differs from traditional interval training in that it is unstructured; intensity and/or speed can be varied whenever the athlete wishes.
INTERVAL TRAINING is a type of physical training that involves bursts of high intensity work. This high intensity work is alternated with periods of rest or low activity.
LACTATE THRESHOLD is a useful measure for deciding exercise intensity for training and racing in endurance sports (e.g. long distance running, cycling, rowing, swimming and cross country skiing), but varies between individuals and can be increased with training.
TOP 5 TRAINING TIPS
1. Never set out on an empty stomach
Starting a training session on an empty stomach can increase the chances of early fatigue. If you are a morning runner and find it hard to stomach food prior to leaving the house then why not try a Fuelmax gel. Each 70g gel contains 25g of carbohydrates which helps break the overnight fast.
2. Reduce saturated fat in diet
High amounts of fat in the diet can result in unhealthy weight gain as well as stomach upsets during training. Try to avoid foods containing more than 5g of saturated fat even on rest days.
3. Meeting carbohydrate needs
It is important that you are consuming sufficient amounts of carbohydrate on a daily basis when training for a marathon. Aim to consume 6g of carbohydrate per kg of body weight each day. Example: 70kg x 6g = 420g per day.
4. Rehydrate during exercise
During exercise you should aim to match your fluid intake as closely as possible to your losses. When fluid loss is significantly higher, such as in hot climates, a carbohydrate-electrolyte solutions like FuelMax are a good idea.
5. Rehydrate and rebuild after exercise
Promax is a protein shake designed to help you during exercise by helping you rebuild muscle. It’s trusted by thousands of athletes to help them safely reach their goals. For one serving mix 1 scoop with 200ml of cold water in a Maximuscle shaker. Taking the Promax protein shake as part of your nutrition and training will help you rebuild efficiently.
