Training to go from 1:21 half marathon to 1:15 in ~9 months?

Those workouts are quite fast for somebody only running 81min in a half. Bump the mileage and the long runs and you could probably shave a few minutes off. Not to 75min though, that's probably more than 9 months out.

Looking back at my logs, I ran a 75min half in May 2013. PR before than was 79min from July 2012. PR before that was 81min from March 2012.

So it took me about 14 months to get from 81 to 75. Most of that improvement happened in fall 2012 when I trained for xc for the first time, doing about 65 mpw that fall and 75 mpw the next winter preparing for track.

So it was my first year of running for a team with consistent workouts/long runs/mileage all year.

My 5k in that same time period went from 17mid to 15:47.

Bumping your mileage will definitely net you a faster time. Get up to 65+ mpw if you can handle it.

When I first ran 1:21, I was right around 50 mpw. Within 8 months (June 2012 - February 2013), I got down to 1:15. I did this by doing 2 very specific things:

1) I increased my mileage. I averaged 67 mpw in the months weeks leading up to the 1:15. Peak week of 84 miles. I very gradually built up to that number and often took "down weeks" (10-20% mileage drop) every 5th week.

2) I ran one weekly workout and it was the same simple workout every week. I did this weekly workout for 2+ years straight starting in November 2012 (no joke). I am not claiming it's the "secret", but it sure as h*ll worked for me. I do understand that anecdotal evidence isn't worth much. Here is the workout:

A long run with miles alternating between goal pace and goal pace + 20-30s. Warm-up, alternating miles, cooldown all performed as a continuous run (no stops at any point once you start the warm-up).

Week 1 of a cycle would be something like l: 2-3 mile warm-up, 4-5 miles alternating 5:50/6:20, 2-3 mile cooldown. This nets an 8-11 mile run with lots of quality.

Peak weeks would have been right around: 3 mile warmup, 10-12 miles alternating 5:50/6:10, 3 mile cooldown.

The rest of my runs were all the same. 8-10 miles easy every morning. Right around 7:00 pace. Oftentimes, I would run progressively (start at 7:40, end around 6:20-6:30), but I never did that intentionally. I just focused on feel.

Like I said, this got me from 1:21 to 1:15 in 8 months. Within 15 months it had me at 1:13:47. I also dropped my marathon PR from 2:48 down to 2:39 during the same 15 month timeframe.

I know a great way to get you to run a 1:24 half Mary

Great post Cpt Ahab! Do you have times from under distance races during this timeframe as well?

Seriously mate? wrote:

Great post Cpt Ahab! Do you have times from under distance races during this timeframe as well?

May 2012 (the month before the 1:21) - 18:05 5k

July 2012 - 17:37

December 2012 - 16:58

FellowCpt..Ahab wrote:

Seriously mate? wrote:

Great post Cpt Ahab! Do you have times from under distance races during this timeframe as well?

May 2012 (the month before the 1:21) - 18:05 5k

July 2012 - 17:37

December 2012 - 16:58

Whoops! Didn't mean to post yet.

February 2013 - 1:15:43 HM

March 2013 - 35:00 10k

April 2013 - 16:19 5k

April 2013 - 2:44 marathon (Boston)

June 2013 - 16:10 5k

October 2013 - 2:39 marathon (Chicago)

November 2013 - 1:13:47

half wrote:

My buildup to run a 1:21 was about 45-50 miles per week and in my peak I got to about 4xMile in 5:25 with 4 minutes rest, and 12x400 in 76 with 45s rest with some 200s after. I did cross country workouts as the half marathon was after the season. Will bumping up my mileage guarantee a faster time? My long runs were about 10-11 miles at 7:00 pace.

Is that you, Jane? Might be better to lay low for awhile.

Great!

I like this idea very much. I'm currently at 2:43 for the marathon and want to aim for sub 2:40 this year in Berlin. I'm interested in your long runs for your marathons....did you limit it to the 3 WU + 12 Alternating Pace + 3 CD as this gives a total of 'only' 18 miles. No runs longer than that?

Bayno wrote:

I like this idea very much. I'm currently at 2:43 for the marathon and want to aim for sub 2:40 this year in Berlin. I'm interested in your long runs for your marathons....did you limit it to the 3 WU + 12 Alternating Pace + 3 CD as this gives a total of 'only' 18 miles. No runs longer than that?

Correct. No runs longer than that. In fact, I never ran further than 18 (excluding marathons) until this past year.

However, I don't think that adding a more traditional long run (20-23 or whatever some people do) in every other week would have been a bad idea. I just never did it.

Had I done so, I probably would've kept the workout to 12-14 total miles the week of the long run.

Honestly, I neglected long runs due to time constraints. Back then, Sundays were my only day where I could consistently run for more than 75 minutes in. This scheduling challenge prompted me to "combine" my long run and workout every week. I liked it and it worked so I never really tried to change it.

In early-mid 2014, I more or less plateaued and stopped racing/training altogether. I started back up in January 2016 with a more "traditional" schedule. I finally broke that 1:13:47 PR with a 1:13:31 last weekend. I am hoping for sub-2:35 in May.

Thanks, I will definitely give this a try and by alternating the faster alternating pace run and a LSD every other week.

Congratulations on your PR and good luck for the sub 2:35.

Not sure if you're male or female but if you're male, you don't need all those miles. Run 38-45 miles a week and you should run 1:15 easy. No long run over 12. If you're male and can't hit that time, there is something wrong with your training. Believe me I did it off 35 a week. Adjust.