Intermediate Half Marathon Training Plan: 12 Weeks for 1:30 to 2:00

An intermediate half marathon plan runs 12 weeks at five runs a week, peaks at about 53 km, and is built on threshold running. It fits runners whose fitness predicts a 1:30 to 2:00 half: roughly a 19:30 to 26:00 5k, or a 10k between about 41 and 54 minutes. Sub-1:45 sits in the middle, sub-1:30 at the fast edge.

The 12 weeks

Sample plan · Intermediate half marathon

12 weeks, 5 runs a week, peak 53 km, longest run 18 km. Built for a recent 5k of 21:00 (VDOT 47.0). 81 % of the running is easy.

BaseBuildPeakTaper

Week	Km	Key sessions	Long run
1 Base	35	Easy running only	12 km long run
2 Base	38	Easy running only	14 km long run + strides
3 Base	40	Tempo run: 15 min T	14 km long run
4 Base, recovery	32	Progression run: 11 min M · 11 min T	11 km long run
5 Build	44	Cruise intervals: 3 × 1.6 km T (1 min jog); Long intervals: 4 × 3 min I (3 min jog)	15 km long run
6 Build	49	Tempo run: 20 min T; 30/15 sets: 2 × (13 × 30 s I / 15 s jog), 3 min between sets	17 km progressive long run
7 Build	53	Broken tempo: 2 × 12 min T (2 min jog); 5k time trial	18 km long run
8 Build, recovery	42	Progression run: 18 min M · 18 min T; 1000 m repeats: 3 × 1000 m I (400 m jog)	14 km long run
9 Peak	52	Half-marathon pace reps: 2 × 3 km race pace (2 min jog); Long intervals: 3 × 3 min I (3 min jog)	18 km long run with marathon-pace finish
10 Peak	52	Race-pace run: 5 km race pace; 30/15 sets: 2 × (13 × 30 s I / 15 s jog), 3 min between sets	18 km progressive long run
11 Peak	52	Half-marathon pace reps: 2 × 3 km race pace (2 min jog); Hill repeats: 8 × 75 s I (2 min jog)	18 km long run with marathon-pace finish
12 Taper	29 + race	Sharpener: 4 × 2 min race pace (2 min jog); race day	None, race week

Open this plan with your own race time →

• Base, weeks 1 to 4. From 35 to 40 km a week, long runs of 12 to 14 km. Threshold starts in week 3 with a 15-minute tempo.
• Build, weeks 5 to 8. Up to 53 km. Threshold every week (cruise intervals, a 20-minute tempo, 2 × 12 minutes broken tempo, an 18-minute marathon-pace plus 18-minute threshold progression), plus short VO2max work. A 5k time trial in week 7.
• Peak, weeks 9 to 11. Half-marathon pace joins: 2 × 3 km, a continuous 5 km, 2 × 3 km. Long runs of 18 km finish with 4, 6, then 9 km at marathon pace.
• Taper, week 12. Volume cut to about half, inside the 41 to 60 % range Bosquet's meta-analysis found works best. Four 2-minute race-pace pickups, then race day.

Who counts as intermediate

The level comes from Jack Daniels' VDOT, one number from a recent race that sets every training pace. Intermediate means a predicted half of 1:30 to 2:00, roughly VDOT 36.5 to 51. A 1:45 half is VDOT 42.6 and a 1:30 half is VDOT 51.0. The sample runner has a 21:00 5k, VDOT 47, which predicts 1:36:28.

Half marathon finish	Race pace	Easy	Marathon	Threshold	Interval
1:30	4:16	4:49–5:47	4:27	4:11	3:50
1:45	4:59	5:34–6:39	5:10	4:50	4:26
2:00	5:41	6:18–7:31	5:52	5:29	5:02

Look at the race pace and threshold columns. They are only 5 to 12 seconds per km apart.

Why threshold is the half-marathon workout

Daniels defines threshold pace as the pace you could hold for about an hour in a race. An intermediate half marathon lasts 90 to 120 minutes, so race pace sits just below threshold. That makes every threshold session close to race-specific. For the sample runner, a 20-minute tempo at 4:28 per km is only 7 seconds per km faster than the 4:35 of a 1:36 half.

The plan uses four threshold formats and rotates them, so the stimulus stays the same while the session changes:

• Cruise intervals, 3 × 1.6 km with a minute of jogging. Easier to hold on pace than a continuous run.
• Tempo runs of 15 to 20 minutes continuous.
• Broken tempo, two long threshold blocks with a short jog between.
• Progression runs, marathon pace straight into threshold.

Around them, 81 % of the running is easy, close to the 80 % Seiler found in well-trained endurance athletes. Casado (2021) found world-class distance performance is best predicted by the volume of easy running plus deliberate practice of tempo and short intervals. The same two ingredients carry this plan, at a smaller scale.

Your own plan, in a minute

The sample is one runner. The half marathon training plan generator takes your recent race, your weeks, your running days and your long-run day, and paces every session for you. Add a goal like 1:29:59 and it shows the gap to your prediction. The paces update when you enter the week-7 time trial. Free, no email, PDF included.

FAQ

What 5k time do I need for a sub-1:30 half marathon? About 19:36, VDOT 51. A 10k of 40:39 predicts the same half.

How many kilometres a week for a 1:40 half? This plan peaks at 55 km on five days. A 1:40 half is VDOT 45, inside the intermediate band, so the same volume applies.

How long should the long run be for a half marathon? 18 km in this sample, about 95 minutes. The plan caps it at 35 % of the week and 22 km, so peak-phase long runs are 85 % of the race distance.

Should I run intervals or tempo runs for a half marathon? Both, but tempo first. Threshold appears every week from week 3. VO2max intervals come in smaller doses and keep the top end honest.

Only need your training paces? Enter a recent race:

More in this series: the beginner, advanced and sub-elite half marathon plans, the intermediate 10k plan and the intermediate marathon plan.

Sources

• Casado et al. 2021, predictors of world-class long-distance performance
• Seiler 2010, training intensity distribution
• Bosquet et al. 2007, tapering meta-analysis

Cover image: TrainingZones.