The cooler months in Australia — from April to October — herald the running season. If you’ve always wanted to have a crack at the popular 21.1km event — or have run one but would like to do a half marathon under 2 hours — the MFO guide will help you get there.

The program requires four or five training sessions a week and is designed to help you nail a sub-two-hour time. For those of you planning to run faster than that, you can still use the plan, but adjust the pace and intensity to suit you and your goals for the event.

Men’s Fitness Online – 12-Week Plan to do finish a half marathon under 2 hours

Target time: Sub-2 hoursTarget pace: ~ 5:40 per kmFrequency: 4 runs per week + cross training (optional, but advised)Base fitness required: Comfortable with a 3-5km Run without stopping. If not, you shouls read out Beginner’s Guide to Running

Weekly Overview

Key Sessions Explained

Tuesday – Threshold Run

• Start with 10 mins easy jog (approx. 7:00/km)

• Move straight into threshold pace running (approx. 5:41/km)

  • This should feel “comfortably hard” – you can talk, but only in short phrases

  • Example: 20–30 mins at threshold pace

• Finish with 10 mins easy jog to cool down

Why it matters: Threshold running trains you to hold race pace without accumulating too much fatigue, improving your ability to maintain consistent effort over distance.

Wednesday – Easy Run or Cross-Train

Start with 5–10 mins of light warm-up (jog, dynamic stretches, or light cardio)

Run at an easy, conversational pace (approx. 6:30–7:00/km)orCross-train with low-impact cardio (swim, cycle, row, elliptical) for 30–45 mins

Focus on relaxed movement and good form — no strain, no speed

Stay in Zone 2 heart rate if you’re tracking (roughly 60–70% of max HR)

Finish with a few minutes of walking and light stretching

Why it matters:This session builds your aerobic base while helping your body recover from harder workouts. Easy effort enhances circulation, supports muscle repair, and reinforces endurance without adding extra fatigue. Done consistently, it’s a key pillar for long-term progress and injury prevention.

Thursday – Hills or Track Intervals

Option 1: Track Session

• 10 mins easy jog to warm up

• Intervals such as:

  • 6 x 400m in 2:16 (target race pace), 90 secs slow jog (8:00/km) between reps

  • OR 4 x 800m in 4:32, with 2-min slow jog recovery

• 10 mins easy jog to cool down

Option 2: Hill Session

• Find a steep hill ~60m in length

• 8–10 repeats of:

  • Run hard up in 25 sec

  • Jog back down in 35 sec

• 10 mins jog warm-up and warm-down

Why it matters: These improve VO2 max, strength, and your ability to recover between hard efforts — critical for managing fatigue in the latter half of the race.

Saturday – Easy Run (6:30/km pace)

• 6–10 km depending on the week

• Stay relaxed, focus on form

• Mix surfaces: parks, trails, road

Sunday – Long Run (6:15–6:30/km pace)

• Builds weekly by ~2 km every week

• Top out at 20–22 km

• Should always feel conversational

Why it matters: Long runs adapt your body to spend time on feet, improve fat metabolism and condition your legs to endure 21.1 km of effort.

The Plan: Stick this to your fridge

TIPS FOR A GREAT RACE

Good advice for a hot half marathon.

• Train at the same time of day as the race will be run. This will help set your body’s schedule for eating and toilet breaks. If you want to do a half marathon under 2 hours your need to get your body into a schedule.

• Familiarise yourself with the course as a mental rehearsal. This could mean running over part of it ahead of race day or checking over the course map and finding a similar route to train on.

• You don’t need to cover the full 21.1km before race day — that’s what the race is about. However, to build stamina, you do have to ensure that your last long run is in the 17-19km range.

• Taper properly. “Cutting back on training 7-9 days before your half will allow you to be rested and race at your best,” says running coach Sean Williams. “The gains from tapering — fresher legs and a hungry mind — are substantial. You’ll be faster.”

• Make sure everything you’ll wear on race day fits properly — socks, cap, shoes etc. If you’ve bought yourself new runners to race in, test them out over at least a total of 30km of training before you wear them for the race.

• Leave the iPod at home.  Although mobile music can be an asset on long solo runs, most race organisers frown on their use or ban them altogether.

• If you’re not that concerned about your time for the race, go out at an easy “talking pace” for the first 14km. If you’re feeling fine at that point, up the pace as desired.

• Check the weather forecast. If it’s going to be cold on race morning, don’t waste energy shivering in your singlet at the start — wear an old unwanted sweatshirt you can ditch, or fashion a big black garbage bag into a makeshift poncho that’ll keep your warmer.

• Don’t stress — being agitated on race day will waste much-needed energy. Work out driving directions and any pre-race preparations needed. Breakfast, change of clothes, shoes, bib number — have it all figured out before you hit the sack. If you want to do a half marathon under 2 hour you need to be focused and prepared. So get your shit together. You’ll sleep and run better.

HOW TO CARBO-LOAD

If you think carbohydrate loading equals stuffing pasta and bread down your throat for a week before the half marathon, you might actually be hindering your results. Nutritionist Sabrina Cahill helps you get it right.

What is carbo-loading?

This tried and true technique involves changing your training and nutrition in the lead-up to an endurance event to maximise your muscle glycogen (carbohydrate) stores, which can increase your endurance and result in a 2 to 3 percent improvement in performance.

How does it work?

The original seven-day carbo-loading method was developed in the ’60s by Swedish physiologist Gunvar Ahlborg. The initial depletion phase involved a stint of hard training followed by three to four days of very low carbohydrate intake (10 percent of total kilojoules). This was followed by a loading phase of solid rest and very high carbohydrate intake (90 percent of total kilojoules). The first phase was believed to improve the absorption of carbohydrates in the secondary phase.

Modern methods

Research has since shown the depletion phase isn’t necessary. Modern carbo-loading involves a week of tapering (low exercise load) and a high-carb diet (70 percent of total kilojoules) for three days prior to the race.

If you’re keen to do a half marathon under 2 hours, we’d recommend a method developed by researchers at the University of Western Australia in 2002. Athletes maintain their normal diet and train lightly until 24 hours before the event. On the day before the race, they perform a short but very high-intensity workout, then consume 12g of carbohydrates per kilogram of lean body mass for 24 hours. The result is a 90 percent increase in muscle-glycogen storage.

Loading mistakes

Sports dietitian Sally Garrard warns against carbo-loading mistakes.

• 1. “To get a carbo load, you need to taper. Take rest days before your race.”

• 2. “Carbo-loading isn’t an excuse to gorge, unless you want to feel sluggish. Also, avoid excess fats, like creamy pastas.”

• 3. “If your gut is sensitive, you may need to reduce your fibre intake during carbo loading. Choose Rice Bubbles over Vita Brits, and eat less veggies and salad.”

• 4. “Finally, never try eating anything new on race day.”

RUN TO THE BEAT

Music is a legal stimulant. An inspirational tool. A welcome distraction from aching muscles and blistering feet. And while some music may not boost your half marathon performance (jog on, Celine Dion), the right choices can have you raving across the finish line.  By Tim Spicer

Sports psychologist Peter Terry, from the University of Southern Queensland, has been studying how music can assist an athlete’s performance. He surveyed 11 elite triathletes running on a treadmill, either listening to motivational music, or with nothing, — and those with music ran for 75-78 seconds longer. But why?

“Music reduces your perceived exertion,” says Terry. “It works like a metronome, regulating movement for greater economy. It also provides a generalised relaxation response, which enhances blood flow,” he says. “It also distracts from fatigue, and provides a rhythm to concentrate on, which makes it easier.”

Music has proven benefits for running, but how do you structure the most efficient playlist for your half?

“You need to know your stride rate,” says Terry. “Then choose music with a tempo that matches it exactly.”

In 1998, Ethiopian distance runner Haile Gebrselassie [twice Olympic champion and eight-time world champion], broke the 2000-metre world indoor record after asking for “Scatman” by Scatman John to be played, so he could match his stride to its 135 beats-per-minute.

Professor Terry’s research has been used by Mizone to create four songs that assist exercise performance. Download them for free at mizonemusic.com.au.

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