Runner's World - Experts Explain How to Determine Weekly Mileage Goals for a Half Marathon
Experts Explain How to Determine Weekly Mileage Goals for a Half Marathon / Coaches break down how to determine your goals.
By Emilia Benton
Published May 21, 2025 4:20 PM EDT
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Hensley aims to get beginner runners running up to four days a week and to a point where a 60-minute run doesn’t feel too demanding before starting to build up their long runs.
“A lot of sub-elite or elite athletes can get away with 90-minute long runs in half- marathon training because many of them are only racing around 60 minutes,” Hensley tells Runner’s World. “But if someone is going to be out there two to three hours, their long run will be closer to the two-hour range.”
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Hensley also emphasizes you shouldn’t skip your other easy runs during the week, which serve a purpose in your race preparation.
“Easy runs help to build the capillary bed, increase the size and number of mitochondria in the muscle cells, improve fuel metabolism, and prepare the body for the demands of the race,” he explains. All of these payoffs help you run more efficiently, making harder efforts feel easier. “If done at the correct effort, these runs bring about great aerobic adaptations to make you a better distance runner.”
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“One of my favorite workouts for the half marathon is a four- to five-mile tempo run [at your goal pace], which I feel is a safe distance to practice that can actually be very challenging,” Hensley adds.
Hensley emphasizes it’s okay if your pace ends up 10 to 30 seconds slower than goal pace on these runs, particularly if you’re out in less-than-favorable training conditions, like the heat, which slows you down.
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Hensley also checks to make sure athletes don’t have lingering fatigue, a history of injury, and that they have seen improvements in performance to determine if they
“If you graduate from a certain volume and you felt great and had great races without additional fatigue, you can raise your volume,” Hensley adds.
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Photos by Tracy Ann Creative / Tracy Ann Roeser