Half Marathon Running Schedule
A half marathon running schedule that will set runners up for success is one that is set up to train the athlete to prepare for their goal race pace.
You have to have a plan going into a half marathon, even if you are brand new to the sport.
We all have our own goals for this sport.
All of us have our own dreams and aspirations from what we want out of our running.
The athlete who qualifies for the Boston Marathon or Olympic Trials is no better then the athlete who is overweight yet is out the door daily trying his or her best to get back in shape.
Our worth as human beings is not tied to how fast we run.
Every one of us has a story to tell, something that could benefit the life of someone else.
Interest and Commitment
Everyone wants to run faster, lose weight or set a new personal best for the half marathon distance.
There is a big difference between interest and commitment and if you have running a specific time in mind and you want a half marathon running schedule that will help you do it, commitment, not mere interest will drive you to find it.
I have created several half marathon running schedule plans here at rundreamachieve as well as created training schedules from the 5K to marathon distances
I knew prior to creating them that people were seeking out answers as have I the last 23 years of how to run a half marathon at a set pace longer.
How can I gradually get back into running so that I can finish a half marathon?
How can I go from running 9 minute mile pace for the half marathon to 7.15 pace?
What must I do to sustain pace longer?
Why do the Kenyans seem to never get tired when they are racing?
The questions were endless for me as I am sure they have been for you. Be Patient
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Results don't come overnight in this sport.
We get far too bent out of shape for the most absurd reasons if a race doesn't go our way, so caught up in our self-worth if we don't meet our expectations.
I keep in mind now that I am a bit older and perhaps a little more wiser than I was when I was an 18 year high school senior, that my worst races could be someone else's dream performance.
No matter what your goals are, expect some trials along the way.
The coach or perhaps a mentor, someone you know who has more fitness experience than you, should create a half marathon running schedule that teaches the athlete patience and the process for excellence.
How long are you willing to endure to see success?
Success for you could be running 13.1 miles at 10-minute pace, finishing the distance without having to stop or holding under 5 minute mile pace.
The question is.
Are you interested or fully committed to see your dream become a reality.
A Few ‘Must Have's' A Half Marathon Running Schedule Must Contain
A balance between recovery and anaerobic efforts.
I don't care if you run 140 miles a week.
There are people who can do half of that and get better results.
Volume doesn't equal results.
I know because I have done the big weeks and seen no return on investment in terms of racing.
Sure, could I say I ran 140 mile weeks?
Yes, but anyone can do that.
Work smarter, not harder.
You can get better results on less if you are doing quality work and not caught up in quantity mindset.
It doesn't matter if you can do 4.42 per mile repetitions on the track at 6000 feet elevation if you cannot mentally put it together in the race.
Do you have the discipline to run easy on your recovery days.
A half marathon running schedule should consist of workouts that will, over time, teach the athlete to sustain their goal pace.
It will test the athlete's anaerobic limits
The reason why the Kenyans, Japanese, Ethiopians, runners from any part of the globe, make racing look easy is they have trained in such a way that they can covert lactic acid back to energy.
They have taught their bodies to do this by a proper balance between extremely hard running and easy, recovery running at extremely slow paces.
If the athlete is disciplined enough to show up at the prescribed time to conduct the workout but does not know how to slow down on their easy days, it is not a half marathon running schedule that is going to set them up for success.
A coach can create the program, it is up to the athlete to listen to the advice or follow their own plan.
Some athletes have to learn the hard way and sometimes that is needed in order to find out what works best for you.
Learning The Hard Way
I write from my own experience.
I thought running 140 miles a week would help me set a personal best in the half marathon to marathon distances.
What it taught me was to tell myself I did 140 miles a week and how to run the majority of those miles far slower than I was planning on racing.
Sound familiar to you?
You have to have the patience to succeed in the half marathon distance and it has to be a gradual, long-term progression.
You don't go from running 3.00 for the half marathon to 1.05 in a few weeks or months.
Sometimes it will take a decade, maybe two.
Are you prepared to make that type of commitment?
I have been training for 7 years to better my half marathon best.
The faster you run, the harder it gets but if your hungry and patient enough, a personal best will become your reality.
Key Take Aways
1. Feed yourself the right mental thoughts.
Folks are more concerned about Ebola and what the media is telling them then how to get fitter, run faster, build a business.
Folks will spend more of their precious, priceless time paying attention to what Wolf Blizter has to say on CNN than reading a book or feeding themselves something positive instead that could change their physical or financial future.
I have a philosophy now.
if it doesn't make me a better husband, increase my bank account, help me leverage my time or feel better, I pay no attention to it.
I have traded the radio for success seminar recordings.
Television has been replaced by writing posts like these and building businesses for myself and helping others to do the same.
Television doesn't help sick people better, lose weight, gain financial freedom or help motivate a life.
Want to know what successful runners focus on?
Winning mentality, hard work, belief, patience, focus, motivation.
2. Believe In Yourself
Stop losing it over a bad race or workout.
Do you still have the ability to run?
Can you see the beauty around you from nature to the other runners you may have competed against?
There are some people who do not have the luxury of sight or the countless other blessings we all take for granted.
One bad race or workout isn't the end of the world.
What did you learn from it?
What can you take from that effort which will help make you all the more determined and driven for your next race.
Failure is part of success yet it is the hidden component that rarely gets the fanfare or media attention as success does.
Success feels great.
It is awesome to get a new personal best.
My half marathon (1.07.06) and marathon bests (2.19.35) are from 7 years ago.
Do you think I am any less driven now to get a personal best than I was in 2007?
Absolutely not.
I am training now to earn new personal bests in both distances in 2015.
Success is going from failure to failure and not losing enthusiasm – Winston Churchill
3. Practice Goal Pace
I don't care if it is 11-minute pace you want to hold for 13.1 miles or 5 minute mile pace.
Easy running 95 percent of your training week is not a half marathon running schedule that is going to set you up to meet your goal, if it is time specific.
Anybody can run easy, it takes an artist to run fast.
It takes mental agility, focus and drive to practice running fast and I'll tell you why.
It is painful, uncomfortable and most people, myself included, know that you really have to have the mental fortitude and focus to hang on when you are hurting.
If your half marathon running schedule is not testing you, in some form or fashion, throw it away now.
I have created plans here at rundreamachieve that can assure, will take you to your limits but I can promise you if you are brave enough to see them through, you are going to set a new personal best.
4. Don't Expect It To Be Easy
Your goal may be just to finish the distance and that is a great accomplishment in and of itself.
There are people who choose to not do what you are training to do.
This isn't a 5K where you start, blink and are just about done with your race.
The longer the race, the more mental focus and energy output that is involved.
Don't lose hope if you cannot hit a certain pace for a specific distance the first few weeks of your half marathon running schedule.
The body will adapt but you have to have the patience to see it through.
5. Allow The Physiological Changes To Occur
It takes approximately 21 days for any physiological adaptation to occur within the body.
When I was in college my coach, Jack Hazen, who was selected as the head mens and women's distance coach for the 2012 Olympic Games, had us start our cross county season by doing 6×1-mile repetitions on the grass.
We wouldn't start out doing 6 repetitions at 4.35 like at the end of the year.
It was a long-term process and unless you have the patience to think long-term, expect this whole half marathon training commitment to be more difficult than it needs to be.
Be patient and give yourself time to come into shape.
I promise you, it will happen.
Coach had us starting out at 85% of our best mile time.
My best time, back then, for the mile was 4.24 as an income freshman to Malone Univesity so I started our cross-country season doing my mile repeats at 5.05.
We'd do that same exact workout for three weeks, at the start of the 4th week coach would move us to 88% which meant I now had to do them around 4.53-55 per rep with the same amount of rest, 3 minutes.
Our half marathon running schedule at Malone University was very similar.
6. Break Your Training Into Segments
You focus on one intensity for roughly three weeks until the body adapts and then you focus on the next until race pace feels comfortable, instead of unsustainable.
You don't start doing 10-mile tempo runs at 8.30 mile pace the first 2 weeks into your half marathon running schedule when your best time for your half marathon is currently 8.40 mile pace.
It doesn't work like that.
Set small, short-term goals and large, long-term goals.
For example, a short-term goal could be to finish the week with a specific goal in mind such as doing 2 miles at your goal pace or 4 miles at 10 seconds faster than your goal pace.
7. Set Easy And Challenging Goals
Set a goal that is challenging but not unrealistic considering it is so early in your half marathon running schedule.
A long term goal could be, in 6 weeks time, run 7 miles at your goal half marathon pace or lose 5 pounds.
Keep these things in mind to help create a success mindset throughout your half marathon running schedule training.
Find something that will keep your motivated during the days when you just do not feel like getting out the door for another run.
In closing, I have created half marathon running schedule plans for beginners, advanced and elite level athletes here at rundreamachieve and you are more then welcome to give any of them a try.
They all come with money back guarantees.
If you don't get anything out of them, simply send me an email and I'll refund you the purchase price.
Keep in mind, one bad race or workout is not the end of your running career.
If we have tomorrow we have a chance.
Always remember that your worst race could be someone's dream performance.
This will help you keep a level head and not spend any of your mental energy that could be spent on something else in your life that needs your attention.
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