PaceLab starts with what you can do now, checks whether the goal fits the time available, then builds training in simple phases.
Build my free plan →Current weekly running and your longest recent run matter. Recent 5K, 10K or half-marathon results improve pace estimates, but they are optional. If you do not know them, PaceLab leans more heavily on RPE.
The feasibility assessment looks separately at weeks available, current endurance base and — when you give us a target time — the performance gap implied by your recent results.
The plan uses Base → Build → Specific → Taper. Most running stays easy, with one focused quality session in most beginner weeks. Long runs progress conservatively and cutback weeks reduce load.
Easy, steady, threshold-oriented and race-specific sessions all have different jobs. The plan links those sessions back to the science library so a beginner can understand the reasoning without reading a physiology textbook.