Half marathon, marathon, or trail race: which challenge to choose this season?

When a new season begins, a key question is often choosing the type of race format you want to prepare for in the coming months. But how do you choose the right race format for you? For example, should you focus on a half-marathon, a marathon, or a short or long trail run? This will, of course, depend on your experience, your profile, and your goals. Here are some tips for choosing the right format.

The Half-Marathon

The half-marathon is both a demanding and an accessible race. It is demanding because it requires running 21.1K at a sustained pace. But it is also accessible because it can be prepared for over a three-month period and requires less training time than a marathon. The half-marathon suits many profiles: the beginner runner who wants to go beyond 10K, the experienced runner looking to get back into shape or who has a busy schedule, or even the experienced marathoner who wants to prepare for their next marathon by running a half-marathon. A large number of half-marathons are organized in France and abroad, almost all year round. It is therefore very easy to find one by planning a little in advance.

For runners new to the distance, a minimum of three months of training and three outings per week are needed to properly prepare for a half-marathon.

The average time for most participants in a half-marathon is around 2 hours. Regular runners finish in about 1h40-1h50.  Very good amateurs run them in 1h30 or less, and the best, depending on the race level, between 1h10 and 1h20.

For the record, and if you're feeling ambitious, the men's world record for the half-marathon is held by Ethiopia's Yomif Kejelcha in 56 min 51 s (set on August 23, 2026, in Buenos Aires), and the women's record by Ethiopia's Letesenbet Gidey in 1 h 2 min 52 s (set on October 24, 2021, in Valencia).

No, you read that correctly: these are not times for 10K, but for 21K!

The Marathon

The marathon is the premier road race. It is the event that concludes the Olympic Games. It is a very demanding race. It requires running 42.195 km, and, not surprisingly, the last ten to fifteen kilometers are the most difficult, requiring one to dig deep and be mentally strong when the race gets tough. Running a marathon requires building a good level of endurance beforehand. For a marathon, you need to prepare over a period of four to six months with at least three sessions per week, ideally four. You also need to learn to manage nutrition and hydration, especially during the famous 'long runs'. The marathon is not suitable, with rare exceptions, for runners who have not already run a half-marathon to gradually discover the world of endurance. A half-marathon can even be included in a marathon preparation phase. It is obviously not a distance suitable for beginner runners. Beginners should first go through the 10K and then the 21K before tackling a marathon. Running a marathon only one year after starting running is already very ambitious. Becoming a marathoner remains a very beautiful challenge, a symbol, and a very rich history that dates back to antiquity and the city of Marathon in Greece.

You have a wide choice of marathons to run, in France or abroad. The two main seasons are spring and autumn.

The median time for a marathon is generally between 4h15 and 4h30, meaning that half of the runners complete it in less than 4h15/4h30 and the other half in more than 4h15/4h30. Regular runners generally finish between 3h30 and 3h45, or under 4h.  Very good amateurs run them in under 3h00 or 3h15. The best, depending on the level of the race, take between 2h15 and 2h30 to complete their marathon.

The men's world record for the marathon is held by Kenya's Sabastian Sawe. He is the first man to break 2 hours in a "race situation." He ran the London Marathon on April 26, 2026, in 1h 59 min 30 s. Kenya's Ruth Chapngetich holds the women's record at 2 h 9 min 56 s. She set this record in Chicago on April 21, 2024.

Trail Running

If you prefer to leave the road and venture onto trails and paths in contact with nature, trail running is for you. If you are looking for different sensations from road running, if you want to be closer to nature and less performance and time-oriented, trail running is the preferred option. Trail running takes you on more varied but often also more rugged terrain. The positive and negative elevation, climbs and descents change the game compared to road running and make this discipline just as demanding, but differently, with changes in pace, climbs, descents, varied terrain, courses alternating between paths and trails. You set off on an adventure, in the forest, in the mountains, in the countryside. You must be self-sufficient; you must bring your own nutrition and hydration. Descents can become technical. Climbs may require the use of trail poles. Trail running is also a community spirit a little different from that of road running, which can be more "time and performance-oriented", even if this culture of performance is increasingly gaining ground in the world of trail running.

Given the highly varied distances and very different profiles of trail races, there are no comparable reference times between races. Beyond the differences in elevation, the three main formats can be described as short trail, long trail, and ultra-trail.

Short trail runs range from 20 to 40 km, long trail runs from 40 to 80 km, and ultra-trail runs go beyond 80 km. The other dimension is, of course, D+ or positive elevation gain: for short trail runs, often less than 1500m; for long trail runs, between 2000 and 4000m; and for ultra-trail runs, over 4000m and up to 10000m for the most difficult races.

Among these three main options: half-marathon, marathon, or trail, there is no "best" choice. It depends on each individual, their experience, their profile, their goals, and their preferences. It is also possible to try everything and prepare for a marathon in the spring by running a half-marathon during the training period, then following up with trail running in late spring and summer. Anything is possible. That's the beauty of running and its various forms. So, don't hesitate, get started, and choose your race format(s) for the season. And most importantly, enjoy it!