Half marathon 95 mins build aerobic base hard

You should do supplementary work to keep yourself injury free. This includes stretching, massage and strengthening exercises. Dynamic stretching should be carried out before any run that requires you to move faster than a jog and static stretching should be carried out afterwards. Again, a coach would be able to teach you these or you could look for tips on the injury prevention section of runbritain. You should also endeavour to do much of your training off road - on grass, gravel or dirt as these surfaces are far more forgiving than tarmac and so you will have less shock going through your joints. It would be worth investing in a pair of trail shoes for these runs as they will give you the grip and protection you need for uneven ground.

Abbreviation key

R = Rest

AR = Active Rest (walk, bike or swim)

E = Easy pace

H = A long (400m - 800m), gradual hill. Run continuously up and down.

T = Threshold pace (half marathon race pace)

F = Faster than race pace. Take the same amount of time to run easy in between the fast efforts.

Any session that includes fast running should also include a 10 minute warm up with dynamic stretching and a 10 minute cool down with static stretching.

The sessions don't have to be done on the days suggested - they should fit in and around the rest of your life but try to keep to the formula of having an easy day or a day of rest after the faster sessions. Recovery is a very important part of training. Likewise, if you are feeling tired on a day where a fast session is scheduled, save it for another day and have a day off or an easy run. It is important to listen to your body. It will tell you when you need recovery. An elevated resting heart rate is also an indication that you need to rest as there is a possibility that you are fighting off a bug or virus. Don't run if you are ill or run down.

By Jackie Newton. Level 3 UKA endurance coach and runbritain online editor.

This week's training aims to build aerobic base. The training load is

hard.