Half marathons are excellent races. At 13.1 miles (or 21.1K), they’re long enough to give you great satisfaction from completing one, but short enough that you can recover quickly after one. They’re also a great stepping stone for runners who want to move up in distance but who aren’t yet ready to tackle the marathon.

We give you two training schedules, which have been put together in conjunction with Uta Pippig’s coach, Dieter Hogen. The first schedule is better suited for beginning runners whose primary half marathon goal is to complete the distance. The second schedule is for more experienced runners, including those whose primary goal is to run the half marathon notably faster than normal training pace.

Guidelines for following the first schedule: Before you start the first schedule, you should be able to run 10 kilometers without having to stop.

The schedule starts with four training sessions per week for the first three weeks. The volume is increased as you extend the distance you run once or twice a week. Training days can be switched around as it suits you up to the seventh week. You should certainly make sure you are well recovered from a fast run and warm up with stretching beforehand. (Indeed, be sure to make stretching an integral part of your training.)

It’s important to train properly. That means increasing speed, both in the context of your preparation and within an individual session. For the runs in which you vary the pace, such as when the schedule reads “s-m” or “m-f,” run the first 25% of the distance at a slower pace than the average for the session. The green days are your long, easy runs. The red days are your harder, faster workouts. Uta used this color-coded scheme throughout her career. See the bottom of the schedule for additional explanations of the various workouts in it.

Explanation: s = slow; m = medium; f = fast; sessions of varying pace (s-m or m-f); vf = very fast
Guidelines for following the second schedule: The same principles apply as for the first schedule. The volume is, of course, greater; consequently, it’s possible to cope with more intense and longer training sessions.

If you’re aiming for a particular time, the pace of the steady runs should be between 95% and 100% of your race pace for the half marathon, and those of the faster sessions between 105% and 110%.

Of course, in the build-up you can do shorter races and modify the schedule that at present shows easy training days for Friday and Saturday. If the race is in an easy week, don’t do the fast run on Tuesday. Instead, run an easy 15K on that day, and then continue with the schedule. The green days are your long, easy runs. The red days are your harder, faster workouts. Uta used this color-coded scheme throughout her career. See the bottom of the schedule for additional explanations of the various workouts in it.

Explanation: s = slow; m = medium; f = fast; FL = fartlek, i.e. speedplay