Beginner half marathon training plan

A beginner half marathon training plan takes a newer runner managing about 20 km a week, who can run 5 km in around 35 minutes from where they are to race day in 17 weeks, building to 31 km in the biggest week. It spends 7 weeks in base, 6 weeks in build, 2 weeks in peak, 1 week in taper, with 3 lighter weeks to absorb the work, on 4 days a week.

Build my half marathon plan — free

Built from your own numbers and your own week. The first week is free.

Is 16 weeks enough?

16 weeks is a comfortable length for a first half marathon. There is room for a proper base before the harder work, lighter weeks to absorb it, and a taper that leaves you fresh rather than flat.

What the weeks are for

Base	7 weeks — aerobic volume, mostly easy, the foundation everything else stands on
Build	6 weeks — the harder sessions arrive and volume keeps climbing
Peak	2 weeks — the biggest, most race-specific weeks
Taper	1 week — volume drops, intensity stays, you arrive fresh
Lighter weeks	3, roughly every fourth week
Total	423 km, 85 hours

The 17 weeks

Generated for a newer runner managing about 20 km a week, who can run 5 km in around 35 minutes.

Week	Phase	Volume	Load
1	Base	19 km	154
2	Base	21 km	167
3	Base	22 km	178
4	Base · down	14 km	120
5	Base	24 km	191
6	Base	26 km	202
7	Base	27 km	214
8	Build · down	21 km	167
9	Build	25 km	206
10	Build	27 km	216
11	Build	28 km	224
12	Build · down	25 km	198
13	Build	29 km	231
14	Peak	30 km	239
15	Peak	31 km	246
16	Taper	25 km	199
17	Race · race	30 km	325

The biggest week, session by session

Week 15, peak phase — the heaviest week of the block.

Tuesday	Threshold — 2 × 9 min — 0h42, 4.5 km
Tuesday	Strength — lower body — 0h27
Thursday	Race pace — 3 km — 0h44, 4.7 km
Saturday	Easy run — 1h40, 10.9 km
Sunday	Long run — 1h39, 10.8 km

The paces

Pace band	Per kilometre
Easy — the ceiling, not the target	8:38
Marathon pace	7:48
Threshold	7:23
Interval (VO₂max)	6:42

Computed from VDOT 25.6, derived from that time trial using Jack Daniels' model. Your own numbers will differ — the plan builds these from a time trial you enter.

What this plan says out loud

Worth knowing

Some sessions have been cut to fit the time you said you have — 45 minutes on a weekday and 100 at the weekend. That is a real constraint and the plan respects it, but be aware the long session is the one that matters most: if you can find more time anywhere, find it on the weekend.

Worth knowing

On 4 days a week there is nowhere to put 20 km without prescribing runs nobody should be doing. The plan caps individual easy runs at 14 km and carries less volume than your target as a result. More days would do more for you than longer runs.

Worth knowing

Race day looks like about 2:40:58 on today's fitness — Run 2h 41. Assumes a flat course, reasonable conditions and a sensible first half.

Common questions

Is 16 weeks enough for a half marathon?

Yes, for most people who already exercise. We would choose at least 16 weeks, and this is 16.

How many days a week does it train?

4, on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday in this example. You tell the plan which days you actually have, and it never puts two hard days back to back.

What is the longest session?

Long run, about 1h40 and 11 km. It is capped by share of the week, by absolute length, and by the time you say you have.

Can I use this if I train at altitude?

Yes, and you should say so when you build it. Paces and power are corrected for the difference between where you tested and where you train — in Johannesburg that is roughly 8%, or about 26 seconds a kilometre on an easy run for a 20-minute 5 km runner.

Beginner half marathon training plan

What the weeks are for

The 17 weeks

The biggest week, session by session

The paces

What this plan says out loud

Common questions

Other half marathon plans

Goal times

South African races at this distance

Worth reading