2016 Pittsburgh Half Marathon Training Plan

I'm currently "in-training" for the Pittsburgh Half Marathon on May 1st. I say "in-training" because while I don't need 16 weeks to train for a half marathon I do want to start building now. I spent October - December focused on strength training. I typically ran once per week, MAYBE twice. Definitely a change of pace.

But now, I'm ready to work on BALANCE as I strive to maintain strength while becoming a better runner (any/all tips for what's worked for you appreciated).

I have a few running goals this Spring & I'm linking up with Marcia, Patty & Erika today for Tuesdays on the Run to share them.

1. Run a sub 25:00 5K : I've never done this, in fact I've only ever raced 1 x 5K, but I came so close, and I want to break 25.

2. Another HM PR : I have my eye set on the Boston Trail HM as my goal HM this spring...but for some exciting reasons (that hopefully I'll be able to talk about on Thursday) that may not be in the cards this spring. So, I'm looking at a few others that might work, one north of Pittsburgh on April 2nd. But for right now, Boston Trail is still on the books.

3. More pace specific running : I've always just sort of made up paces & run how fast or slow I was in the mood to run. I know paces have their purpose, so I'll be doing some time trials to help better determine what paces I should be running.

So, without further adieu...my PGH HM 2016 Training Plan

Week #	Week Of	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
BUILD	1/11 -- 17	TIME TRIAL + ARMS	SPEED PYRAMID + 5 HILL	LEGS+ 3	OFF	FULL BODY	6-8 MILE RUN	HIKE
BUILD	1/18 -- 24	TIME TRIAL + LEGS	4 MILE PROGRESSIVE RUN	ARMS + 3	OFF	FULL BODY	6-8 MILE RUN	HIKE
BUILD	1/25 -- 31	TIME TRIAL + ARMS	4 X 1 MILE @ 8:20	LEGS+ 3	OFF	FULL BODY	6-8 MILE RUN	HIKE
BUILD	2/01 -- 07	TIME TRIAL + LEGS	SPEED PYRAMID + 5 HILL	ARMS + 3	OFF	FULL BODY	8 MILE RUN	OFF
BUILD	2/08 -- 14	TIME TRIAL + ARMS	4 X 1200 + 5 HILL	OFF	LEGS + 3	FULL BODY	10 MILE RUN	OFF
BUILD	2/15 -- 21	ARMS + SPIN	8 X 400 @ 7:00 + 5 HILL	5 MILES	FULL BODY	NEW ZEALAND	NZ	NZ
BUILD	2/22 -- 28	NZ	NZ	NZ	NZ	NZ	NZ	NZ
1	2/29 -- 06	OFF	8 X 400 @ 7:00 + 5 HILL	LEGS+ 3	OFF	FULL BODY	6 MILE RUN	OFF
2	3/07 -- 13	LEGS + 3	4 X 1.5 MILES @ 8:20	OFF	ARMS + SPIN	OFF	MAD MARCH 5K + 7	OFF
3	3/14 -- 20	ARMS + SPIN	6 X 800 @ 7:25	OFF	4 MILES	FULL BODY	12 MILE RUN	OFF
4	3/21 -- 27	FULL BODY	3 X 2 MILES @ 8:20	OFF	FULL BODY	4 MILES	6 MILE RUN	OFF
5	3/28 -- 03	ARMS + SPIN	2 X 3 MILES @ 8:20	OFF	4 MILES	FULL BODY	12 MILE RUN	OFF
6	4/04 -- 10	ARMS + SPIN	3 X 2 MILES @ 8:20	OFF	LEGS + 3	FULL BODY	6 MILE RUN	OFF
7	4/11 -- 17	OFF	3 MILES	ARMS + SPIN	3 MILES	OFF	BOSTON TRAIL HALF	OFF
8	4/18 -- 24	OFF	OFF	ARMS + SPIN	LEGS + 3	FULL BODY	6 MILE RUN	OFF
9	4/25 -- 01	OFF	3 MILES	ARMS + SPIN	3 MILES	OFF	OFF	PGH HALF
	LIFTING/CROSS TRAINING
	LONG RUN	9:30 PACE
	SPEED WORK	400 @ 7:00
		800 @ 7:15
		1200 @ 7:30
	EASY RUN	9:00 - 10:00 PACE
	RACE	5K GOAL, SUB 25	HM GOAL, 8:30 PACE
	OFF DAY

After deciding that I wanted to focus on the balance between strength & running & armed with the knowledge that I really don't like running more than 3 days a week, I created my own training plan.

I am in no-way certified at anything, and this training plan is very different than anything I've made before. But I am interested to see how it turns out. I'll call the 7 weeks leading up to & during my New Zealand trip my "Build Phase", after I return I'll begin the real HM training.

My off days rotate to a certain extent because of what I guesstimate the BF will have off of work. His rotating schedule can leave me guessing sometimes, but shuffling a few things to be able to sleep in together is always worth it.

While I have most Sundays listed as off days I'm certain almost all of them will include hiking, biking or yoga. But I hate to dictate to myself months in advance what I might be in the mood to do that day.

I've added my plan to the new Training tab at the top of the page.

My Tuesday workout updates will refer back to this plan, hopefully I'll have only good things to report.

Any feedback on my plan? Please be honest. Tried something similar? Did it work?

How do you handle vacation during your training plan?