October 20, 2026
Extra races in your plan: train for the race in front of you
Running a 10K or a half marathon on the way to your goal? Add up to three extra races to your plan. Every week trains for the next race, with lighter days before it, recovery after it, and an expected finish time for each race.
Few runners train for months toward one race without running another one along the way. A 10K in the winter, a half marathon as a dress rehearsal, or simply the local race in your own town: they're all part of running. Starting today, your plan takes them into account. Add up to three extra races before your goal, and your plan builds them in, with a lighter week before each race, recovery after it, and an expected finish time for every race.
At a glance:
Train for the race in front of you
Coaches follow a simple principle: train for the race in front of you. What you train this week depends on the next race on your calendar, not only on your final goal. RunCulture now follows that principle too.
How your plan unfolds: an example
A recreational runner currently runs about 30 km18.6 mi a week, trains 4 days a week, and wants to run a 10K in 18 weeks. There's a half marathon in week 10. Here's what the plan looks like:
| Weeks | What you train | Long run |
|---|---|---|
| 1–4 | General build-up, with threshold work and short pickups | builds from 13 km8.1 mi to 18 km11.2 mi |
| 5–9 | Half marathon training, with recovery weeks in weeks 5 and 8 | up to 19 km11.8 mi |
| 10 | Race week: fewer miles, half marathon on Sunday | the race itself |
| 11 | Recovery: 2 days off, then easy runs only | none |
| 12–16 | 10K training, with a recovery week in week 14 | back to 13 km8.1 mi |
| 17–18 | Taper and race week, your 10K on Sunday | 9 km5.6 mi, then the race |
You can see the principle at work. Until the half marathon, your long run builds to a length that fits that distance. After the race, it drops back to what you need for a 10K, and the focus shifts to speed. Race week counts as a recovery week, so you don't lose a build-up week.
Easier before, recovery after
How your plan handles an extra race depends on the distance.
After every race, you get easy days: easy runs only, no quality workouts, and no long run. The first days, you don't run at all.
| Race | Easy days | Of which no running |
|---|---|---|
| 5K | 2 | 1 |
| 10K | 4 | 2 |
| Half marathon | 7 | 2 |
| Marathon | 14 | 2 |
For each race, you'll see an expected finish time and the matching pace, in the race tip and on the pace band. That time is based on your fitness in that week: the further along you are in your plan, the faster it gets.
Your result counts
After the race, enter your result on the race in your plan: your distance, your time, and how hard it felt. Your result counts as a fitness check, just like a test run.
You need an account to enter your result.
How to add a race
In a new plan. In step 1 of the plan builder, choose a race or a PR as your goal. Below it, you'll see the timeline from today to your goal. Choose Add a tune-up race, then find your race in the race calendar or enter it yourself. Each race moves into place on the timeline, and you can see how many weeks there are between your races.
In a plan you've already started. Open the Adjust menu in your plan and choose Add a race. Days that have already passed stay exactly as they were. Your plan only recalculates from today.
Good to know:
Running another race this season? Create your plan or add the race to the plan you've already started.