Marathon Training Schedule

The basics of any marathon training schedule revolve around adapting the body to cope with the stresses put on it by running 26 miles; and while there are many ways to train for a marathon, with just as many marathon training schedules to match, the fundamentals remain the same.  Marathon season is rapidly approaching and on the request of some readers I have compiled the basics of completing a marathon training schedule with some examples of a few relatively generic training programs.

Marathon Training Fundamentals

The long run. Any good marathon training schedule will have multiple workouts with varying lengths, intensities, and durations, with the ever important rest days sprinkled in.  Most programs center on the long run, a once a week workout where you run the greatest single distance of any other workout that week.  Per the specifics of the training schedule you may be following this workout will increase in length by 1-2 miles per week until it (usually) tops out at a twenty mile long run.  When training for a marathon most runners rarely run the full 26 miles on any single day.

Speed work. Another set of workouts common to many marathon training schedules are speed sessions.  These supplement the longer runs by preparing you to run the pace for your desired goal time.  The runner should keep speed workouts (aerobic power) and distance workouts (endurance) very separated.  This allows one system to rest and recover while the other is being trained, allows for the body to convert muscle fibers, and trains the runner to utilize oxygen more efficiently.  As you advance as a runner you can focus more and more on adding additional speed workout session to your training schedule.

Progressive overload. This is the “official” term for gradually adding miles to your training schedule on a week by week basis.  This is usually done by first adding distance to the long run then gradually adding to the mid-week runs.  The starting point of each marathon training schedule is highly variable; dependent on each athlete’s workout history and fitness level.  However, they all usually build up by 5-10% per week until they cap out at between 35 and 70 miles per week.  Progressing more than 5-10% per week, especially for beginners, is one of the most common routes to an injury.

Alternating hard / easy cycles.  In conjunction with gradually adding miles each week to the entire marathon training schedule, each week will have cycles of hard and easy runs with rest or recovery days built in.  A long run, even at a very slow pace, qualifies as a hard day.  Conversely a short run at a moderate or fast pace also qualifies as a hard workout.  Short, slow runs or rest days qualify as easy cycles.  These are typically a two to three mile run and are done following a long run.

Pace.  One of the most common mistakes I see runners making while training for a marathon is running there long runs too fast and doing too little speed workout sessions (if any).  Long runs are meant to be slow, at least 20% slower than your goal pace.  You get faster by running high mileage weeks and adding focused speed work sessions later in the training.  Here’s an example: If your actual marathon goal time is 4 hours, your 20 mile long run should be done at a pace between 11:20 and 12 minute miles.  Sounds very slow doesn’t it? That’s because it is.  However this same runner may be completing 40 -50 miles per week with some very hard speed sessions built in.  So the long runs have to be done slow so the runner can bounce back for more day after day.  Too many athletes, including myself, have made the mistake of pounding out 15-20 mile runs at a fast pace in an attempt to get faster, only to spend two or three days after with legs too sore to run.

Time.  Running a marathon has become something that is within reach of the average Joe.  The average Joe also has a family, a job, a yard to cut, and probably isn’t a professional athlete.   So training for a marathon for most involves time.  Once again, the length of your particular marathon training schedule will be highly variable and be a function of your particular fitness starting point and goal time.  For most, a ballpark figure is 16-26 weeks; for some up to a year.

Sample Marathon Training Schedule #1

Below is a sample marathon training schedule for beginners and intermediate runners; and as with all of the marathon training programs you find on this site they should only be used as a cursory guide.  I do write custom programs geared to individual runners, with specific workouts tailored to specific goals and fitness levels.  These are all different and highly variable.  However, the below training schedules should get you started. Click on the image to view in a larger window. If you have questions about the specifics of completing this, or any marathon training schedule I am always happy to answer.  Just shoot me an email or leave a comment in the section below.

 Sample Marathon Training Schedule #2

The following is an example of a more advanced marathon training program.  It has the athlete running substantially higher mileage with fewer rest days.  Once again, this is only a sample schedule and should be use only as a guide for runners with at least one marathon under their belt who already have an adequate mileage base established.

 

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