Running a half-marathon is an ambitious goal in itself. Most people can’t run 13.1 miles in a week, much less a few hours. The training it will take to make your race day goal will make you stronger, but you have to pace yourself so it doesn’t take too much of a toll on your body. A physical therapist can help you plan your training schedule, avoid injuries, and get your best time possible.
In this blog post, we’ll discuss how to create a half-marathon training plan and how your physical therapist can help.
How to create a half-marathon training plan
Your half-marathon training plan will need to incorporate workouts for strength, speed, endurance and recovery. Figure out how much you’ll have to increase your mileage in total and then break it down so you’re increasing by 10% each week. You’ll also need to know your heart rate zones to plan different types of intensity workouts.
Use these basic structures to build up your strength and speed:
- Tempo runs — Continuous runs where you run at your fastest sustainable pace
- Intervals — Structured interval runs that alternate a certain time or distance “on” with a short time “off” to recover
- Hill repeats — Running on an incline or a hilly stretch of road to build up your strength
- Fartlek — Unstructured runs that combine sprinting and recovery at your own pace
- Distance run — Using a distance run each week to stretch you toward 13.1 miles
- Recovery — An easy jog or, to switch it up, a spin on a bike
How your physical therapist can help with your half-marathon training plan
A physical therapist can help you plan a half-marathon training program that’s realistic and tailored to your current strengths and weaknesses. They can also help you adjust it as you go along. Your PT can provide treatments after hard workouts to help you recover faster, and they can help you address any overuse injuries or pain from past injuries as they come up. We don’t just do injury prevention and recovery, though. Back in Motion is your partner in achieving your best half-marathon performance.
Are you looking for a PT partner to help you train for a half-marathon? Call us or request an appointment today. Let’s create your ideal training plan.
