If you can run a comfortable 10K and you’ve got a half marathon in the diary, this plan is built for you. We teamed up with HOKA athlete and CrossxTraining head coach Ellis Cross to create a 12-week half marathon training plan that’s structured, realistic, and easy to follow without turning your life upside down.

A half marathon is 13.1 miles (21.1km). This plan gets you ready for that distance by building your long run sensibly, keeping the quality work simple, and giving you enough rest to actually absorb the training.

The weekly structure (the bit that makes it work)

Most weeks follow the same rhythm, because that’s how consistency happens.

• Monday: Rest
• Tuesday: Easy run
• Wednesday: Intervals (with warm up and cool down)
• Thursday: Rest
• Friday: Progression run
• Saturday: Rest or optional cross training (XT)
• Sunday: Long run

You’ll notice there are two proper rest days most weeks. That’s not a cop-out. It’s what keeps the hard sessions productive and stops the long run becoming a weekly sufferfest.

What each session means

Easy run: Conversational pace. It should feel controlled, not like you’re chasing anything. This is where most of your fitness gets built.
Intervals: Shorter faster efforts with recoveries. The goal is to improve speed and efficiency without going so deep you can’t train properly the next day.
Progression run: Start easier and gradually lift the effort so you finish stronger. Think controlled build, not sprint finish.
Long run: Steady endurance work. This is the key session for getting comfortable on your feet for longer.
Cross training (optional): Bike, rower, elliptical, swimming. Great if you want extra aerobic work without extra impact.

How the 12 weeks build

This plan progresses in a really sensible way. Mileage creeps up, then you taper down so you arrive at race day feeling sharp.

• Early weeks build your routine and move the long run up through 6 to 8 miles
• Mid-block weeks strengthen the engine and extend the long run towards 9 miles
• Peak week tops out at a 10-mile long run
• Final two weeks taper down so your legs freshen up, while you keep a little speed in the system
• Week 12 is lighter and cleaner, then it’s race day

The key detail most people like hearing is this: you don’t need to run 13.1 miles in training. The longest long run in this plan is 10 miles.

Pacing and effort, the simple way

If you’re new to structured training, the biggest win is knowing when to hold back. Easy runs should feel genuinely easy. Intervals should feel hard, but controlled. Progression runs should finish with purpose, not panic. Long runs should leave you feeling like you could have kept going a bit further if you had to.

If you treat every run like a test, you’ll end up tired and frustrated. If you follow the effort properly, you’ll feel your fitness climb week to week.

Download the plan

Download the 12-week half marathon training plan (PDF)

Use the downloadable PDF on the page to get the full week-by-week schedule in a clean format, ready to follow.