Your First Half Marathon Training Program!

Lifting Program

The following program is designed to be an accessory on top of your running program listed above. I have this listed for roughly ~5 days per week, however it’s okay if you can only do 2 days per week. That is the reason that there is 5 different days of workouts. Use this as a starting point for your running.

I am an advocate of changing up your training phase roughly every ~4-6 weeks. However, this was designed for someone with a busy schedule and maybe you aren’t able to commit this extra time to running and lifting through the months of training.

Another really big topic. There is no such thing as a “runner specific workout“. Any strength training will do. Take a group fitness class, do some bodyweight squats, lunges, bridges, pushups. Anything will help you become more fit and translate into your running. There are specific exercises that you can do, but I recommend doing some sort of full/push/pull body split for any resistance work.

Day 1				Day 2				Day 3				Day 4				Day 5
Exercise	Sets	Reps/Time		Exercise	Sets	Reps		Exercise	Sets	Reps		Exercise	Sets	Reps		Exercise	Sets	Reps
Squat	3-4	6-12		Lat Pull Down	3-4	6-12		Goblet squat	3-4	6-12		DB Bench Press	3-4	6-12		Deadlifts	3-4	6-12
DB Lunge	2-3	12-15		One Arm DB Row	3-4	12-15		Romanian Deadlift	2-3	12-15		Incline DB Press	2-3	12-15		Good Mornings	2-3	12-15
DB Step Up	2-3	12-15		Seated Cable Row	3	12-15		DB Deadlift (Suitcase hold)	2-3	12-15		Machine Chest Fly	2-3	12-15		Leg Extensions	2-3	12-15
Barbell Hip Thrust or Glute Bridge	3	12-15		DB Curl	3	12		Sumo Squat w/DB	3	6-12		Seated DB Press	3-4	6-12		DB Curl	3	12
Hip Adductor	2	12-15		Tricep Extension	3-4	12		Glue kick back (with weights or machine)	3	15		Lateral Raises	2-3	12-15		Incline Skullcrusher	3	12
Hip Abductor	2	12-15		Cable Curl	3	15
				Cable Pressdown	3	15

Hip Mobility and Strengthening

Hip mobility and strengthening is essentially to keeping your legs healthy, and get past the fatigue of long runs. This will be again another 2-3x a week thing to add into your routine. Pre-hab on this part of your routine will do wonders for you in the long run.

You can get this plan for free by signing up through this link – https://4-week-hip-mobility-program.carrd.co/

Running Program

The Hal Higdon programs are great and the Novice 2 provides a little more challenge and enough rest and X-training days that we can utilize so there isn’t much stress. We could also substitute a day of running for another bike or elliptical day. 

The key there is a 1:3 ratio/ I’ve used that in the past, so if there’s 3 miles to run, that’s 9 miles on the bike.

You can check it out here https://www.halhigdon.com/training-programs/half-marathon-training/novice-2-half-marathon/ 

Core

The following is a 14 week core outline, that you should try to incorporate into your workouts atleast 3x a week. Core is more than abs, it’s lower back and your hips. The three things that are used to stabilize just about every activity and lift.

Week	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3
1	Plank – 3 sets of 30 seconds	Russian Twists – 3 sets of 12 reps	Bicycle Crunches – 3 sets of 12 reps
2	Side Planks – 3 sets of 30 seconds per side	Leg Raises – 3 sets of 12 reps	Plank with Hip Dips – 3 sets of 12 reps
3	Plank with Arm and Leg Lift – 3 sets of 12 reps per side	Seated Leg Tucks – 3 sets of 12 reps	Side Plank with Leg Lift – 3 sets of 12 reps per side
4	Swiss Ball Rollout – 3 sets of 12 reps	Reverse Crunches – 3 sets of 12 reps	Plank with Knee Tucks – 3 sets of 12 reps per side
5	Stability Ball Pike – 3 sets of 12 reps	V-Ups – 3 sets of 12 reps	Side Plank with Reach-Through – 3 sets of 12 reps per side
6	Hollow Body Hold – 3 sets of 30 seconds	Mountain Climbers – 3 sets of 12 reps	Russian Twist with Medicine Ball – 3 sets of 12 reps
7	Plank with Alternating Leg and Arm Raise – 3 sets of 12 reps	Seated Scissors – 3 sets of 12 reps	Bicycle Crunches with Medicine Ball – 3 sets of 12 reps
8	Side Plank with Leg Lift and Hip Dip – 3 sets of 12 reps per side	Reverse Crunches with Medicine Ball – 3 sets of 12 reps	Plank with Shoulder Taps – 3 sets of 12 reps per side
9	Swiss Ball Plank – 3 sets of 30 seconds	Toe Touches – 3 sets of 12 reps	Side Plank with Leg Lift and Reach – 3 sets of 12 reps per side
10	Stability Ball Knee Tucks – 3 sets of 12 reps	Leg Raises with Medicine Ball – 3 sets of 12 reps	Oblique Crunches – 3 sets of 12 reps per side
11	Plank with Alternating Knee Tucks – 3 sets of 12 reps per side	Russian Twist with Stability Ball – 3 sets of 12 reps	Bicycle Crunches with Stability Ball – 3 sets of 12 reps
12	Side Plank with Arm and Leg Lift – 3 sets of 12 reps per side	Reverse Crunches with Stability Ball – 3 sets of 12 reps	Plank with Leg Raises – 3 sets of 12 reps per side
13	Swiss Ball Jackknife – 3 sets of 12 reps	Seated Knee Tucks with Medicine Ball – 3 sets of 12 reps	Side Plank with Leg Lift and Knee Tuck – 3 sets of 12 reps per side
14	Plank with Alternating Arm Reach – 3 sets of 12 reps per side	Toe Touches with Medicine Ball – 3 sets of 12 reps	Oblique Crunch

So you want to start running in 2024? Maybe you have a goal for a first half marathon? Or maybe you are looking to just start? Check out this free plan here. It’ll get you started with no signups needed!

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