Weekly Mileage Calculator for Your Race Goal
The weekly distance for your race goal, and where your volume stands.
Choose your distance and your goal to get a target range for your peak week. For the half marathon and the marathon, you also see what runners really did. The 5K and the 10K have no measured data.
Your weekly volume
What do you want to know?
Choose what you want to know, then your distance.
Where the measured figures come from
The marathon figures come from Muniz-Pumares et al.: 151,813 marathons by 119,452 runners, with their weekly distance in the 16 weeks before the race. The half marathon and marathon groups by volume come from Fokkema et al. (2020), a survey where runners reported their own training.
The Tanda formula (2011) links marathon time to weekly distance and training pace. It was fitted on 22 runners who finished between 2:47 and 3:36, so we only use it inside that window.
Want to understand these figures, with the full table by finish time? Read our guide to weekly running mileage
Your target range (advice)
The target is a peak week to build towards, in kilometers, for each distance and goal. These are TrainingZones.io reference points, not measurements.
| Distance | Finish | Improve | Perform |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5K | 15 to 25 km | 25 to 40 km | 40 to 60 km |
| 10K | 20 to 30 km | 30 to 50 km | 50 to 70 km |
| Half marathon | 25 to 40 km | 40 to 60 km | 60 to 80 km |
| Marathon | 40 to 65 km | 60 to 85 km | 85 to 115 km |
- Finish: complete the distance in good shape.
- Improve: beat your previous time.
- Perform: aim for a high placing or a big personal best.
The target builds progressively: a peak week is reached over several weeks, starting from the volume you run today.
How to read the result
Measured and target figures are not the same thing. The measured figures are monthly averages of weekly distance. The target is a peak week, the biggest week of the build, so it sits above an average.
Measured means what runners did. It is not a prescription, and it does not prove that more kilometers make you faster.
The Tanda formula: marathon pace in seconds per km = 17.1 + 140 × e^(-0.0053 × K) + 0.55 × P, where K is the weekly distance in km and P your mean training pace in seconds per km, over 8 weeks. It is valid for marathon times from 2:47 to 3:36 only, with a margin of about 4 minutes.
Related Tools
Scientific References
The recommended ranges are TrainingZones.io reference points built from published plans, such as Hal Higdon's. They are advice, not measurements.
- Muniz-Pumares D, Hunter B, Meyler S, Maunder E, Smyth B (2025). The training intensity distribution of marathon runners across performance levels. Sports Medicine, 55(4):1023-1035. doi.org/10.1007/s40279-024-02137-7.
- Fokkema T, van Damme AADN, Fornerod MWJ, de Vos RJ, Bierma-Zeinstra SMA, van Middelkoop M (2020). Training for a (half-)marathon: Training volume and longest endurance run related to performance and running injuries. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, 30(9):1692-1704. doi.org/10.1111/sms.13725.
- Tanda G (2011). Prediction of marathon performance time on the basis of training indices. Journal of Human Sport and Exercise, 6(3):511-520. doi.org/10.4100/jhse.2011.63.05.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the weekly mileage calculator work?
You pick a distance and a goal. The tool gives the target range for your peak week and, for the half marathon and the marathon, what runners really did. If you enter your weekly volume instead, it finds the closest measured reference point.
Where do the measured numbers come from?
From two studies. Muniz-Pumares et al. followed 151,813 marathons by 119,452 runners over the 16 weeks before the race. Fokkema et al. surveyed half marathon and marathon runners about their weekly distance. The Tanda formula (2011) is only used inside its limits.
Why is my result different from my training plan?
A plan gives a peak week, often higher than a monthly average. The measured figures are averages over a month, the targets are peak weeks. Your plan also takes your history and your coach into account: when in doubt, follow your plan.
Can I enter my distance in miles?
Yes. Switch the unit to miles: what you type and what you read are converted (1 mile = 1.609344 km).