Thousands of runners are out on the streets this morning for the Manchester and London Royal Parks respective half marathons, which both kicked off at 9am.
Frankly, we’re just proud if we make it out of bed for that time on a Sunday morning…
Whether you’re training, participating, or just wondering when the runners will make it across the finish line, keep on reading to find out how long it takes to run a half marathon.
What distance is covered in a half marathon?
A half marathon covers 13.1 miles (21.1 kilometers).
How long does it take to run a half marathon?
There’s no hard and fast rule about how long it takes to complete a half marathon as it’s completely dependent on individual fitness levels.
However, according to Runner’s World, it takes UK runners an average time of 2 hours 2 minutes and 43 seconds.
This breaks down into an average time of 1 hour 55 minutes and 26 seconds for males and 2 hours 11 minutes and 57 seconds for females.
To put this into perspective, this is approximately three minutes longer than Eliud Kipchoge’s record-breaking full marathon time of less than two hours.
Beginners tend to have a slower time, with most taking around 2 hours and 20 minutes to 3 hours to complete the race.
How long does it take to train for a half marathon?
Once again, this will vary based on how experienced you are, but as a rule of thumb, it requires around three months of dedicated training.
Super experienced runners might be able to undertake the challenge in as little as six weeks, but many train for longer if they want to beat their personal best.
Beginners are recommended to undertake a 12 week training schedule, and many choose to run smaller 5k races as part of their training.
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