Half Ironman Triathlon Training Plan

This 19 week plan should be considered an intermediate level plan and it assumes you have had either a year of solid training in all three sports, or a Triathlon season competing in a number of Olympic or similar distance events, and are ready to take the next step. This plan also assumes you can swim 1500 meters, cycle for 50kms, and run for 70 minutes with reasonable comfort. Following this plan, you will be training twice a day on a three week build with a one week recovery cycle. There will be a complete rest day once a week - Sunday has been selected but you can move it to suit your weekly schedule. The recovery days are important to keep, as are the recovery weeks, because this is when your body will adapt to the increase in demand during the previous three weeks and allow you to continue to build on that strength in the following week. By concentrating on building a solid base in the early weeks, introducing some sprint training in the build and peak periods, and tapering the last two weeks, you will arrive at the starting line in top condition, confident you have completed all the required training.

The plan is broken into four stages; base, build, peak, and taper. The base stage is exactly what it sounds like - you are laying the foundations of your fitness like a pyramid - the larger and stronger the base, the longer your fitness will stand. A solid base stage will ensure that any interruptions in training such as illness or injury will have a lesser impact on your training schedule and overall fitness levels. It should comprise of only moderate levels of intensity. If you are returning from training sessions completely exhausted then you need to slow down a little. Swimming in the base period is relatively straight forward, combining a solid block of freestyle laps with some drills thrown in to keep your technique and basic skills intact. You may think the time in the pool a bit long but swimming is a great base builder, as it's low impact and quick to recover from, so keep those swim sessions in there. The run should be focusing on steady volume, the last thing you want here is an injury from pushing too hard, so try to keep the pace steady. On Tuesdays are "Tempo" runs, which are a little slower than your race pace and faster than your easy long distance pace - your body needs to get used to running at a faster pace so that when we start the build phase it is ready. The bike session is again comprised mainly of steady paced volume rides. Time in the saddle is the key here. If you're starting this plan in the winter some of these can be done on an exercise bike or wind trainer, but be sure to get out on the road at least once a week to keep your skills sharp.

The build stage is where we will start to increase the intensity by introducing sprint/interval sessions for each discipline, and although overall training hours won't increase, you may feel some strain so make sure you take maximum advantage of your recovery weeks by dropping one or two workouts on a recovery week if you are really tired. Try and finish each interval session for the swim at a solid 800-1000 meters of easy freestyle with good form. It is best to finish a swim with the proper technique rather than at a blistering pace. Your run sprint/hill sessions should go for around 25 minutes, including 5 minutes warm down. If you choose to do hills, make sure your hill isn't so steep that you can't finish your session. It is important to listen to your body at this point in the plan, as you need to start each sprint or interval session fresh and ready to go, to get maximum benefits from it. For your cycling, intervals will improve your overall muscle endurance and strength but on race day you could be spending up to 3 - 3 1/2 hours on the bike, so don't neglect your long ride on the weekend. We also begin bricks (marked with black boxes) in the build stage, which are race simulated workouts, eg. finishing your long ride then quickly getting your runners on and hitting the road for a quick 20 min run. This will get you ready for the experience of running on tired legs straight off the bike. Keep the run leg of your brick easy for the most part, as we will be doing a couple of faster bricks in the peak stage. Overall it is not particularly important what time of day you choose to do your training but I would highly recommend a few early morning swims from week 15 onwards, as most Triathlons start early and its best to know how you will feel and what your body can handle for breakfast before the race.
This plan includes only a 2 week peak stage as we assume it is your first Half Ironman distance race. On paper this stage looks almost the same as the build stage but the difference lies in how you attack your training. You need to focus on your intensity, especially in the sprint and interval work, even if it means slowing down on your long endurance sessions to allow proper recovery. As we have a taper stage coming up, it's ok to feel tired at the end of this stage as there will be time for rest soon.

The gym sessions run through almost the entire plan, focusing on regular strength training to help condition the muscles rather than bulking up. You can find sport specific weight training plans in the weights section of the training page. It will focus on higher reps with lower weight and not lifting until complete failure. The "Core" sessions refer to abs workouts. You use your abs or core muscle group to swim, ride and run so a solid training plan for these muscles will have very real benefits on all disciplines. If, for any reason you need to cut a gym session short then it is better to skip the weights rather than the abs. You will also notice that the legs are dropped after week 16, and this is to allow full leg recovery as we have been hitting them pretty hard for the last few months. There will be no weights at all during your taper but keep the core workouts up. Stretching is a very important part of any serious exercise routine and a short stretch session after each training session is recommended. Stretching also aids in recovery, so when you finish your ride or run, find a place where you can stretch out the legs and lower back. Flexibility in the hamstrings and lower back area in particular will help you to achieve a good aero position on the bike and will greatly reduce the chance of injury. Stretching after workouts is far more important than stretching before, though a thorough warm up is critical before any intense workout to avoid injury.

The 19 week program


DAY SWIM RUN BIKE GYM Min/pd Hr/pw STAGE
WEEK 1 Mon 35 Laps/drills 45 Core, upper body 80 BASE
WEEK 1 Tue 35 Tempo 45 Medium pace 80 BASE
WEEK 1 Wed 35 Laps/drills 40 Core, legs 75 BASE
WEEK 1 Thu 45 Long & easy 45 Medium pace 90 BASE
WEEK 1 Fri 40 Easy laps 45 Medium pace 85 BASE
WEEK 1 Sat 90 Long & easy 90 BASE
WEEK 1 Sun 8.3 BASE
WEEK 2 Mon 40 Laps/drills 45 Core, upper body 85 BASE
WEEK 2 Tue 35 Tempo 45 Medium pace 80 BASE
WEEK 2 Wed 35 Laps/drills 40 Core, legs 75 BASE
WEEK 2 Thu 50 Long & easy 50 BASE
WEEK 2 Fri 30 Easy laps 45 Easy 45 Medium pace 120 BASE
WEEK 2 Sat 100 Long & easy 100 BASE
WEEK 2 Sun 8.5 BASE
WEEK 3 Mon 40 Laps/drills 30 Easy 45 Core, upper body 115 BASE
WEEK 3 Tue 40 Tempo 45 Medium pace 85 BASE
WEEK 3 Wed 35 Laps/drills 40 Core, legs 75 BASE
WEEK 3 Thu 55 Long & easy 60 Medium pace 115 BASE
WEEK 3 Fri 40 Easy laps 30 Easy 70 BASE
WEEK 3 Sat 120 Long & easy 120 BASE
WEEK 3 Sun 9.7 BASE
WEEK 4 Mon 30 Laps/drills 45 Core, upper body 75 RECOVERY
WEEK 4 Tue 30 Tempo 45 Medium pace 75 RECOVERY
WEEK 4 Wed 30 Laps/drills 40 Core, legs 70 RECOVERY
WEEK 4 Thu 40 Long & easy 45 Medium pace 85 RECOVERY
WEEK 4 Fri 40 Easy laps 30 Easy 70 RECOVERY
WEEK 4 Sat 90 Long & easy 90 RECOVERY
WEEK 4 Sun 7.8 RECOVERY
WEEK 5 Mon 40 Laps/drills 35 Tempo 45 Core, upper body 120 BASE
WEEK 5 Tue 40 Tempo 45 Medium pace 85 BASE
WEEK 5 Wed 35 Laps/drills 45 Medium pace 40 Core, legs 120 BASE
WEEK 5 Thu 60 Long & easy 60 Medium pace 120 BASE
WEEK 5 Fri 40 Easy laps 40 BASE
WEEK 5 Sat 120 Long & easy 120 BASE
WEEK 5 Sun 10.1 BASE
WEEK 6 Mon 40 Laps/drills 35 Tempo 60 Medium pace 45 Core, upper body 180 BASE
WEEK 6 Tue 45 Tempo 45 Medium pace 90 BASE
WEEK 6 Wed 40 Laps/drills 40 Core, legs 80 BASE
WEEK 6 Thu 70 Long & easy 60 Medium pace 130 BASE
WEEK 6 Fri 30 Laps/drills 35 Tempo 65 BASE
WEEK 6 Sat 140 Long & easy 140 BASE
WEEK 6 Sun 11.4 BASE
WEEK 7 Mon 40 Laps/drills 40 Easy 45 Core, upper body 125 BASE
WEEK 7 Tue 45 Tempo 45 Medium pace 90 BASE
WEEK 7 Wed 35 Laps/drills 40 Core, legs 75 BASE
WEEK 7 Thu 80 Long & easy 60 Medium pace 140 BASE
WEEK 7 Fri 40 Easy laps 45 Tempo 85 BASE
WEEK 7 Sat 150 Long & easy 150 BASE
WEEK 7 Sun 11.1 RECOVERY
WEEK 8 Mon 35 Laps/drills 45 Core, upper body 80 RECOVERY
WEEK 8 Tue 35 Tempo 30 Medium pace 65 RECOVERY
WEEK 8 Wed 30 Laps/drills 40 Core, legs 70 RECOVERY
WEEK 8 Thu 40 Long & easy 45 Medium pace 85 RECOVERY
WEEK 8 Fri 35 Easy laps 30 Medium pace 65 RECOVERY
WEEK 8 Sat 90 Long & easy 90 RECOVERY
WEEK 8 Sun 7.6 RECOVERY
WEEK 9 Mon 40 Laps/drills 45 Medium pace 45 Core, upper body 130 BASE
WEEK 9 Tue 45 Tempo 45 Fast pace 90 BASE
WEEK 9 Wed 40 Laps/drills 40 Core, legs 80 BASE
WEEK 9 Thu 90 Long & easy 70 Medium pace 160 BASE
WEEK 9 Fri 40 Easy laps 45 Medium pace 85 BASE
WEEK 9 Sat 160 Long & easy 160 BASE
WEEK 9 Sun 11.8 BASE
WEEK 10 Mon 40 Laps/drills 45 Medium pace 40 Core, upper body 125 BASE
WEEK 10 Tue 45 Tempo 50 Medium pace 95 BASE
WEEK 10 Wed 40 Laps/drills 40 Core, legs 80 BASE
WEEK 10 Thu 90 Long & easy 70 Medium pace 160 BASE
WEEK 10 Fri 40 Easy laps 45 Tempo 85 BASE
WEEK 10 Sat 180 Long & easy 180 BASE
WEEK 10 Sun 12.1 BASE
WEEK 11 Mon 40 Laps/drills 40 Easy 30 Intervals 35 Core, upper body 145 BUILD
WEEK 11 Tue 45 Tempo 45 BUILD
WEEK 11 Wed 30 Intervals 50 Medium pace 40 Core, legs 120 BUILD
WEEK 11 Thu 100 Long & easy 60 Fast pace 160 BUILD
WEEK 11 Fri 40 Easy laps 40 Easy 80 BUILD
WEEK 11 Sat 20 Fast 140 Long & easy 160 BUILD
WEEK 11 Sun 11.8 BUILD
WEEK 12 Mon 30 Laps/drills 35 Core, upper body 65 RECOVERY
WEEK 12 Tue 35 Tempo 30 Medium pace 65 RECOVERY
WEEK 12 Wed 30 Laps/drills 40 Core, legs 70 RECOVERY
WEEK 12 Thu 40 Long & easy 45 Medium pace 85 RECOVERY
WEEK 12 Fri 35 Easy laps 30 Medium pace 65 RECOVERY
WEEK 12 Sat 90 Long & easy 90 RECOVERY
WEEK 12 Sun 7.3 RECOVERY
WEEK 13 Mon 45 Laps/drills 30 Intervals 35 Core, upper body 110 BUILD
WEEK 13 Tue 25 Sprints/hill 25 BUILD
WEEK 13 Wed 30 Intervals 40 Core, legs 70 BUILD
WEEK 13 Thu 110 Long & easy 65 Fast pace 175 BUILD
WEEK 13 Fri 40 Easy laps 35 Easy 75 BUILD
WEEK 13 Sat 20 Fast 160 Long & easy 180 BUILD
WEEK 13 Sun 10.6 BUILD
WEEK 14 Mon 45 Laps/drills 30 Intervals 35 Core, upper body 110 BUILD
WEEK 14 Tue 25 Sprints/hill 25 BUILD
WEEK 14 Wed 30 Intervals 40 Core, legs 70 BUILD
WEEK 14 Thu 120 Long & easy 70 Fast pace 190 BUILD
WEEK 14 Fri 40 Easy laps 35 Easy 75 BUILD
WEEK 14 Sat 20 Fast 180 Long & easy 200 BUILD
WEEK 14 Sun 11.2 BUILD
WEEK 15 Mon 30 Laps/drills 35 Core, upper body 65 RECOVERY
WEEK 15 Tue 35 Tempo 40 Medium pace 75 RECOVERY
WEEK 15 Wed 30 Laps/drills 40 Core, legs 70 RECOVERY
WEEK 15 Thu 40 Long & easy 45 Fast pace 85 RECOVERY
WEEK 15 Fri 35 Easy laps 40 Medium pace 75 RECOVERY
WEEK 15 Sat 120 Long & easy 120 RECOVERY
WEEK 15 Sun 8.2 RECOVERY
WEEK 16 Mon 40 Laps/drills 40 Easy 30 Intervals 35 Core, upper body 145 PEAK
WEEK 16 Tue 25 Sprints/hill 25 PEAK
WEEK 16 Wed 30 Intervals 45 Medium pace 40 Core, legs 115 PEAK
WEEK 16 Thu 120 Long & easy 75 Fast pace 195 PEAK
WEEK 16 Fri 45 Easy laps 35 Easy 80 PEAK
WEEK 16 Sat 20 Fast 180 Long & easy 200 PEAK
WEEK 16 Sun 12.7 PEAK
WEEK 17 Mon 45 Laps/drills 40 Easy 30 Intervals 35 Core, upper body 150 PEAK
WEEK 17 Tue 25 Sprints/hill 25 PEAK
WEEK 17 Wed 30 Intervals 45 Medium pace 20 Core 95 PEAK
WEEK 17 Thu 110 Long & easy 60 Fast pace 170 PEAK
WEEK 17 Fri 45 Easy laps 45 Medium pace 90 PEAK
WEEK 17 Sat 180 Long & easy 180 PEAK
WEEK 17 Sun 11.8 PEAK
WEEK 18 Mon 30 Laps/drills 35 Core 65 TAPER
WEEK 18 Tue 35 Tempo 30 Medium pace 65 TAPER
WEEK 18 Wed 30 Laps/drills 20 Core 50 TAPER
WEEK 18 Thu 40 Long & easy 45 Medium pace 85 TAPER
WEEK 18 Fri 35 Easy laps 35 TAPER
WEEK 18 Sat 90 Long & easy 90 TAPER
WEEK 18 Sun 6.5 TAPER
WEEK 19 Mon 30 Laps/drills 30 TAPER
WEEK 19 Tue 35 Tempo 30 Medium pace 65 TAPER
WEEK 19 Wed 30 Laps/drills 30 TAPER
WEEK 19 Thu 40 Long & easy 45 Medium pace 85 TAPER
WEEK 19 Fri 30 Laps/drills 30 TAPER
WEEK 19 Sat 4.0 TAPER
WEEK 19 Sun RACE DAY!


This is a pretty intense plan, with seven and a half hours on the lowest week and nearly thirteen hours on the highest week. Understandably you may need to shuffle the plan around to fit it into your own schedule and lifestyle, so if you need to drop a training session, try to make it a gym session, as its purpose is to complement the sport specific training and although important, there is no gym leg in a Triathlon so it would be the smarter choice. There is also a fourth discipline not listed here - nutrition. Fuelling your body before, during and after your workouts is critical to your ability to perform and recover. Also practising race nutrition during your longer sessions is also very important. You don't want to get to race day not knowing how your stomach will cope with 1 litre of sports drink, three gels and half a power bar. You need to practice eating and drinking in various volumes to see what works for you. You can also find nutritional advice in the Nutrition section of Swim Ride Run.
The final and most import thing to remember is enjoy yourself. At the end of the day you need to love the sport, the exercise, and the hard work as well as the satisfaction at the end of a race. If you prepare, train, and race within your abilities, you will finish on race day with a big smile and the knowledge than if you put your mind to it you can accomplish great things.

Good luck!


By Chris Allen


Return to Training page