Training program Beginner
Your journey towards Helsingborg Marathon begins here.
Do you also have a dream of running a marathon for the very first time, and specifically, to do it at Helsingborg Marathon? You are not alone. Our goal is to help you reach your goal and become a marathon runner through this training program. The program is based on the assumption that you already run a few times a week and are willing to train up to three sessions per week. It is important to listen to your body, and if you feel particularly tired or fatigued, don’t hesitate to skip a session and take an extra rest day. Remember that the program is general, and you may need to adjust the sessions slightly to suit you optimally.
Your journey towards becoming a marathon runner at Helsingborg Marathon begins here!
Here you can download the training program as PDF to your computer or mobile.
Before we get started…
Your starting point
You are a beginner in running and want to run your first marathon. You currently train a few times a week and may complement it with other forms of exercise. By now, you should already be able to run distances of up to 10 kilometers.
You training
Over the next 16 weeks, you will train three times a week to ensure you have the best possible experience at Helsingborg Marathon. 42,195 meters is a long distance, and the key to success is consistency. To achieve that, it’s important that your easy runs are truly easy, so as not to unnecessarily strain your body. This will allow you to feel fresh and energetic for your quality sessions and long runs.
Your goal
Your goal for this year’s Helsingborg Marathon is to complete the entire distance and enjoy the race. Running with wisdom and maintaining consistency is key in your journey towards the event.
Basic training
Now we begin our journey towards the Helsingborg Marathon. The first four weeks will focus on building a strong foundation with a lot of variation in the training sessions to give you a good start in your training towards your ultimate goal.
Keep in mind that during this foundation-building phase, your distance and long runs should be at a comfortable pace. When we incorporate hill workouts, threshold runs, and intervals, you should pick up the pace and run at a higher intensity.
Week 1
Session 1: Easy Run – 50 min
Session 2: Hill Repeats – 10 x 30 sec uphill with a walking recovery downhill
Session 3: Long Run – 75 min
Week 2
Pass 1: Easy Run – 60 min
Session 2: Threshold Run – 10 x 1 minute at a controlled but uncomfortable pace, with 60 seconds of walking recovery
Session 3: Long Run – 80 min
Week 3
Session 1: Easy Run 60 minutes
Session 2: Easy Run 60 min + 5 Strides
Session 3: Long Run 85 minutes
Week 4
Session 1: Hill Repeats – 2 sets of 5 x 60 seconds uphill with a walking recovery downhill
Session 2: Threshold Run – 5 x 2 minutes + 5 x 1 minute at a controlled but uncomfortable pace, with 60-90 seconds of walking recovery
Session 3: Long Run – 90 min
Hills & Threshold
In this training block, we will focus on hill workouts and threshold runs. This is the phase where we establish a good level of consistency and aim to improve your running strength and endurance. It is during this period that we lay the foundation for you to reach your dream goal.
Week 5
Pass 1: Easy run 60 min
Pass 2: Threshold Run – 5 x 3 min + 5 x 2 min at a controlled but uncomfortable pace, with 60-90 sec of standing recovery
Pass 3: Long run 100 min
Week 6
Session 1: Easy Run – 60 min
Session 2: Hill Repeats – 5-10 x 2 minutes uphill with a jogging recovery downhill
Session 3: Long Run – 100 min
Week 7
Session 1: Easy Run – 60 min
Session 2: Threshold Run – 2 x 10 min at a controlled but uncomfortable pace, with 2 min of jogging recovery
Session 3: Long Run – 120 min
Week 8
Session 1: Easy Run – 60 min
Session 2: Intervals – 6-8 x Superthousand Repeats (mile pace) (400 + 300 + 200 + 100 m with 60 seconds of standing recovery)
Session 3: Long Run – 130 min
Different training sessions in the journey towards Helsingborg Marathon.
Distance running
The distance session is the training session where you simply run and enjoy, clearing your mind. Here, you shouldn’t push yourself, and your heart rate should be low while feeling good. The purpose of this session is to acclimate your body’s muscles, joints, and ligaments to running.
Hills
Hill training is one of our favorite workouts in running as it builds both strength and speed while improving your recovery. The hills you run can be long, short, steep, or gentle. You choose the type of hill based on the purpose of the workout – whether it’s to build endurance, speed, or perhaps strength and running technique.
Intervals
Intervals are the workouts where we focus on becoming faster and improving our aerobic capacity. Intervals are usually shorter than threshold runs and have longer rest periods, typically with easy jogging or standing rest.
Threshold
Threshold sessions are run at a controlled high pace, and it’s always easier to find them if you have, for example, taken a lactate test at a clinic. Otherwise, one usually starts from the pace you can maintain for about 60 minutes. These sessions are designed to improve your endurance.
Long run
The marathon runner’s sacred routine on the weekend. The workout is from 75 minutes up to over two hours, aimed at acclimating the body to prolonged stress. The longer the race you are preparing for, the more important this workout becomes in familiarizing your body with sustained activity.
Threshold & speed
During this period, there is a strong focus on threshold training to help you become a resilient runner and achieve your goal on September 2nd. We incorporate interval workouts to maintain your speed and ensure that race pace feels more comfortable.
Week 9
Session 1: Easy run 60 minutes + 10 strides
Session 2: Fartlek 5 km with 60 seconds fast pace / 60 seconds easy pace
Session 3: Long run 140 min
Week 10
Session 1: Easy run for 60 min
Session 2: Threshold run with 3 sets of 10 minutes (controlled but uncomfortable) with 2 minutes of jogging recovery
Session 3: Long run for 150 min
Week 11
Session 1: Easy run for 60 min
Session 2: Threshold run with 6-8 sets of 3 minutes (controlled but uncomfortable) with 90 seconds of standing recovery
Session 3: Long run for 160 min
Week 12
Session 1: Easy run for 60 min
Session 2: Fartlek run of 5 km, alternating between 90 seconds fast pace and 45 seconds easy pace
Session 3: Long run for 180 min
Threshold & Tapering
With only four weeks left until the big goal, the focus lies on threshold workouts, followed by the tapering phase. The majority of the hard work is already done, so it’s important to train wisely and avoid any injuries during these last weeks.
This is where it counts – on September 7th, you will set a new personal record at the Helsingborg Marathon!
Week 13
Session 1: Easy run 75 min
Session 2: Hill repeats 5 x 2 min + 5 x 1 min with jogging recovery
Session 3: Long run 150 min
Week 14
Session 1: Easy run 60 min
Session 2: Threshold run 3 x 3 km (marathon pace + 10 seconds/km) with 1 km jog recovery
Session 3: Long run 120 min
Week 15
Session 1: Easy run 75 min
Session 2: Fartlek 5 km with 60 seconds fast pace / 60 seconds easy pace
Session 3: Long run 90 min
Week 16
Session 1: Easy run 45 minutes
Session 2: Easy run 30 minutes + 5 strides
Session 3: Helsingborg Marathon