How Long Is a Half Marathon? All Your Questions Answered
Photos by Marques Jackson Photography.
By Marnie Kunz
If you’re wondering how long is a half marathon, it’s 13.1 miles or 21 kilometers. This post will go over all the basics of what you need to know about a half marathon and how to train for one. If you’re considering running a half marathon, I’m also offering my training tips as a running coach.
After the Riviera Nayarit Half Marathon in Mexico.
As a runner and trainer, I’ve trained many people for half marathons as well as run quite a few myself - including in Riviera Nayarit, Mexico, Paris, and NYC. The half marathon is one of my favorite race distances because it requires a good amount of training and planning, but it doesn’t take as much training and recovery time as a marathon. In my opinion, the half marathon is one of the best travel distances as it’s less stressful on the body than a marathon while still being challenging.
How Long Is a Half Marathon? Distance Breakdown
So how long is a half marathon? A half marathon is 13.1 miles or 21 kilometers. A half marathon is half of a full marathon distance, which is 26.2 miles. A half marathon is just a little over the distance of two 10K races.
If you’ve run a 5K or 10K race and are ready for a bigger challenge, the half marathon is a great goal. You can train for a half marathon in 2 to 4 months, depending on your current fitness level. If you’ve been running regularly and have run up to 6 miles recently, you may be able to train for a half marathon in 2 months. For beginners, if you’re starting with a few miles a day, it will take 3 to 4 months to train for a half marathon.
Benefits of Running a Half Marathon
There are many benefits of running a half marathon, from giving you a boost of motivation and building your confidence to improving your health. Here are some of the benefits of training for and running a half marathon:
More motivation. Training for a half marathon gives you a clear running goal and will boost your motivation. Whether you’re running with a time goal or to complete your first half marathon, having a race to train for will keep you going even during tough workouts.
Better heart health. Running and training for a half marathon will give you lots of cardiovascular strengthening activity. Research shows that running strengthens your heart, can reduce blood pressure, and can keep your cholesterol in check.
Reduced risk of injury. Longer, more demanding races like the marathon are more likely to cause injuries or overtraining. According to researchers, half marathon runners have less muscle fiber damage, lose less water and electrolytes, and experience less muscle fatigue. Overall, you can train for a half marathon with less wear and tear on your body and return to running more quickly after the race than if you ran a marathon.
Improved mental health. Running boosts your mental health. When you run, it increases blood circulation to your brain, which helps improve your mood and combat stress. Regular running even sparks the growth of new blood vessels to nourish your brain and running has an antidepressant effect, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.
More confidence. Training for a challenging race such as a half marathon also gives you a confidence boost. Following a training plan and getting in the workouts you need to do to make it to the race finish line will give you a big sense of accomplishment.
Half Marathon Training Tips
Now that you know how long is a half marathon, you may be ready to sign up for one and start training. Here are some tips to help you get started:
Pick a race goal. In general, you’ll need 2 months to train if you’re already running regularly or 3 to 4 months if you’re a beginner.
Build your mileage slowly. Increase your weekly mileage slowly. This includes adding miles to your long runs gradually.
Follow a training plan. A training plan will keep you on track to hit your running peak on race day without overtraining. If you need a customized training plan designed by a run coach, check out our Runstreet Training Center.
Do weekly long runs. The long run is your bread and butter when half marathon training. This is the most important run you’ll do to build your endurance and prepare for race day.
Take fuel on long runs and during the race. Your long runs are a good time to practice your fueling strategy. Take some running fuel - which can be an energy chew or gel or real food such as a banana with peanut butter - during your long runs that last over an hour. Once you find a fuel that works well for you, use it during your half marathon to prevent your body from running out of energy stores.
Do speed workouts if you want to achieve a specific time. For advanced runners, speed workouts are a great way to help you get faster. Check out our speed section for tempo runs, intervals, and other speed workouts.
Taper before the race. Tapering means to reducing your running in preparation for a race. This should be an integral part of your training plan. By decreasing your mileage in the two weeks before your race, you’ll prepare your body to peak at the right time - on race day.
Enjoy the experience! Running is a gift that not everyone is able to do. Be grateful for the run and enjoy your half marathon! Every race you run creates memories.
Take time to recover. After your half marathon, it’s important to take enough time to recover. A good general guideline is to take a recovery day for half your race distance - which means 6 or 7 recovery days for a half marathon. During this time you can do some active recovery activities like stretching, walking, and low-impact cardio.
Related Posts: How to Train for a Half Marathon, 15 Best Half Marathons in the World
Marnie Kunz is a NASM-certified trainer and USATF- and RRCA-certified running coach, Brooklyn resident, Akita mom, and the founder of Runstreet.
