Training for your first half marathon? Congratulations! The half marathon race distance is a big goal for a lot of runners—it’s far enough to challenge your body and mind, without taking you quite as far as the full marathon distance.
If it’s your first half marathon it might seem like an intimidating ambition, but our half marathon training tips for beginners will get you ready for the race line in no time.
After all, you’ll need some structure to your training, you’ll probably want to venture into the world of sports nutrition and fueling, and the weeks ahead might include some of the longest runs you’ve done so far. Fortunately, we can help but those fears to rest. With the following half marathon training tips, we’ll walk you through three ways to train smarter, not harder.
Follow along and we’ll show you how to train for a half marathon (the right way)!
First off, don’t rush the process when you’re preparing to run a half marathon—it’s all about that base. Jumping straight into a training plan isn’t recommended due to the demands of the weeks ahead. The best way to train for a half marathon is to take it slow.
Learn how to prepare for a half marathon—from start to finish (which is what you’re already doing by reading this).
Taking four weeks or so before the start of your “official” training cycle can help ease in. Use this time to make sure you’ve got the appropriate level of fitness and endurance for your 12-16 week training cycle. This can be especially helpful for new runners to build confidence before tackling the training needed for your big race.
Here are some things to consider in your build-up:
In addition to using this base-building phase to prepare your body, these can be the weeks to gather your gear:
Don’t follow a plan. Let a plan follow you.
Now, we all have to start somewhere with our training. So maybe you did a search for a training plan, or you talked to your personal trainer about their half marathon training tips. You found a spreadsheet with all the columns filled out. Eight weeks from start to finish, with weekly workouts and runs all lined up, right? We’re not pointing any fingers, but it’s important to take that spreadsheet with a grain of salt.
After all, these training schedules are pretty generic. They don’t necessarily take into account your fitness level, your work and home life schedule, or the days that you wake up feeling less than stellar. When your training is laid out day-by-day, mile-by-mile, it’s easy to fall into a trap of thinking that you have to follow the plan to a T.
Instead, make the plan follow you with the right balance. Here are some tips to help you make that happen:
Listen to your body and rearrange things accordingly. By all means, get the work in, but NOT at the expense of an early injury or poor running form. You can supplement your plan with cross-training, running on a treadmill, or mixing up your rest days depending on how you feel.
Don’t be fooled into thinking that getting better at running can only come from running more. This is a classic misconception that can often lead to excessive wear and tear on the body as well as overuse injuries. The great news is, you can build strength and skill as a runner through strength training as well as getting in those miles.
Strength training brings a variety of benefits:
Strength training just twice a week, for 20-30 minutes per day is all you need to gain access to a full range of motion and stable control in all of the joints being impacted by those miles- i.e. hips, ankles, knees, you name it.
Some of our favorite tried and true strength movements:
The best part…you don’t even need a gym for most of this stuff! Try this follow-along bodyweight strength workout to see how simple it can be:
Your weeks of training will give you plenty of time to think about race day itself. It doesn’t hurt to think ahead about how you’ll prepare for the starting line. Check out the video below for some of Coach Holly’s race day tips and logistics:
Put these half marathon training tips into practice and you’ll be prepared from the very beginning of your training program all the way to the finish line!
Don’t forget to download our mobile app to access full training programs (including our 8-week Half Marathon Program!), an active running community, and new workouts every week.