Half distance training plans
Six half distance races in the library, a 16-week build behind each one. Every one is written two weeks at a time, phased for how far out you are, and rebuilt the moment you travel, get sick or something starts hurting.
On Pro, the hours, the experience level and the date you give shape every block, and the plan is rewritten when your week changes.
On Pro, a beginner's triathlon week holds 6 to 8 hours and an advanced athlete's 11 to 14, so two people entered in the same race train differently.
The races on this page are examples. In the app you choose a distance and set your own date, so a race we have not listed works the same way.
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HALF DISTANCE AT A GLANCE
- Races covered6
- Typical build16 weeks
- Race monthsApr · May · Jun · Jul · Sep
- True of all 6Water, then road · First come
- SportTriathlon
THE HALF DISTANCE FIELD
What a half distance build has to cope with
Counted off the six half distance races on this page. It is not a general claim about the distance.
HOW LONG THE BUILD RUNS
Every plan at this distance runs to sixteen weeks.
It sits between sprint (10 weeks) and Olympic distance (12 weeks) and full distance (24 weeks).
Whatever the length, the plan is written two weeks at a time and phased for how far out you are, so half distance races that start in a hole and half distance races that start fit do not get the same first block.
WHAT YOU BUILD THROUGH
Three of the six put the bulk of the build in spring; the rest split two in summer and one in winter.
Race dates land in five different months of the year.
WHAT THE COURSES DO
Three of the six are rolling; the rest split two hilly and one flat.
All six are open water then road.
WHAT THE WEATHER DOES
Four of the six are warm; the other two are cool.
HOW YOU GET IN
All six go by first come.
Field size, in starters: five at 1,000 to 10,000 and one at under 1,000.
WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE DATES
None of these has a confirmed date in our library yet, so the table carries the season each one is usually run in rather than inventing a day.
Dates are checked against each race’s own announcement before they go in, and a date we cannot stand behind is left out.
ALL SIX HALF DISTANCE RACES
Every half distance race we have a plan for
Three of the seven things we track vary between these races, so those are the columns. The ones that do not vary are in the card above. Every name links to its own plan.
| Race | When | Course | Conditions | Field |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Augusta Half-Distance TriathlonAugusta, GA | Fall 2027 | Flat | Warm | 1,000-10,000 |
| Boulder Half-Distance TriathlonBoulder, CO | Summer 2027 | Rolling | Warm | 1,000-10,000 |
| Geneva Half-Distance TriathlonGeneva, NY | Summer 2027 | Rolling | Warm | Under 1,000 |
| Oceanside Half-Distance TriathlonOceanside, CA | Spring 2027 | Rolling | Cool | 1,000-10,000 |
| Santa Cruz Half-Distance TriathlonSanta Cruz, CA | Fall 2027 | Hilly | Cool | 1,000-10,000 |
| St. George Half-Distance TriathlonSt. George, UT | Spring 2027 | Hilly | Warm | 1,000-10,000 |