Are you ready to start?
You don’t need to be fast. You do need a base. A fair test before you start a marathon plan:
- you can run 45 minutes to an hour without stopping, at a pace where you could still talk;
- you have been running two or three times a week for a few months;
- ideally, you have finished a 10K or a half marathon, which also gives you a realistic goal time.
If you are not there yet, spend a couple of months building up to it. It makes the marathon plan safer and much more enjoyable.
How long does it take?
Give a first marathon 16 to 20 weeks. The longer plan lets the long run grow slowly, which is what protects your joints and tendons. This sample uses 20 weeks.
Picking a goal time
A first marathon is about finishing well, but a goal time is still useful: it sets your training paces. Use a recent race and the race time predictor, then be generous with yourself. If your 10K is around 58:42, the formula gives a marathon near 4:30:00. That is the goal behind this sample plan: 4:30, at 6:24 per kilometre.
Marathon pace
10:18 /mile Your goal, held for the whole race.
Easy
Most of your running, long runs included.
Threshold
The pace you could race for about an hour.
VMA
About your 3 km race pace, for short repeats.
The 20-week sample plan
This is the plan Run 42 builds for a first marathon in 4:30, three runs a week, the long run on Sunday, for a runner whose last race was a 10K. It starts near 28 km a week and peaks around 45 km.
- Weeks 1–3: easy runs only, and a long run from one hour to an hour and a half.
- Weeks 4–6: one quality session a week, short and controlled.
- Weeks 7–17: the heart of the plan: a marathon-pace run each week, a quality session, and the long run growing to 3h00.
- Weeks 18–20: two weeks of taper, then race week.
Every fourth week is lighter. Don’t skip those: they are when your body catches up.
Base
28.4 km
| Tue |
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Thu |
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Sun |
Long run at easy pace
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Base
30.3 km
| Tue |
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Thu |
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Sun |
Long run at easy pace
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Base
32.3 km
| Tue |
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Thu |
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Sun |
Long run at easy pace
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Build · cutback
25.7 km
| Tue |
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Thu |
6×400 m at VMA pace, 1 min jog between
|
5:26–5:34 /km |
| Sun |
Long run at easy pace
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Build
31.5 km
| Tue |
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Thu |
3×8 min at threshold, 2 min jog between
|
5:51–6:01 /km |
| Sun |
Long run at easy pace
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Build
33.1 km
| Tue |
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Thu |
6×400 m at VMA pace, 1 min jog between
|
5:26–5:34 /km |
| Sun |
Long run at easy pace
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Peak
31.9 km
| Tue |
8 km at marathon pace after a 2 km warm-up
|
6:24 /km |
| Thu |
3×10 min at threshold, 2 min jog between
|
5:51–6:01 /km |
| Sun |
Long run at easy pace
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Peak · cutback
28.4 km
| Tue |
8 km at marathon pace after a 2 km warm-up
|
6:24 /km |
| Thu |
8×400 m at VMA pace, 1 min jog between
|
5:26–5:34 /km |
| Sun |
Long run at easy pace
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Peak
33.5 km
| Tue |
8 km at marathon pace after a 2 km warm-up
|
6:24 /km |
| Thu |
3×10 min at threshold, 2 min jog between
|
5:51–6:01 /km |
| Sun |
Long run at easy pace
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Peak
34 km
| Tue |
8 km at marathon pace after a 2 km warm-up
|
6:24 /km |
| Thu |
8×400 m at VMA pace, 1 min jog between
|
5:26–5:34 /km |
| Sun |
Long run at easy pace
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Peak
37 km
| Tue |
10 km at marathon pace, including a 2 km warm-up
|
6:24 /km |
| Thu |
3×10 min at threshold, 2 min jog between
|
5:51–6:01 /km |
| Sun |
Long run with 2×5 km at marathon pace in the back half
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Peak · cutback
33.7 km
| Tue |
10 km at marathon pace, including a 2 km warm-up
|
6:24 /km |
| Thu |
5×800 m at VMA pace, 90 s jog between
|
5:26–5:34 /km |
| Sun |
Long run with 2×5 km at marathon pace in the back half
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Peak
39.9 km
| Tue |
10 km at marathon pace, including a 2 km warm-up
|
6:24 /km |
| Thu |
2×15 min at threshold, 3 min jog between
|
5:51–6:01 /km |
| Sun |
Long run with 2×5 km at marathon pace in the back half
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Peak
40 km
| Tue |
10 km at marathon pace, including a 2 km warm-up
|
6:24 /km |
| Thu |
5×800 m at VMA pace, 90 s jog between
|
5:26–5:34 /km |
| Sun |
Long run with 2×5 km at marathon pace in the back half
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Peak
43.5 km
| Tue |
12 km at marathon pace — full race-day rehearsal
|
6:24 /km |
| Thu |
2×15 min at threshold, 3 min jog between
|
5:51–6:01 /km |
| Sun |
Long run with 2×5 km at marathon pace in the back half
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Peak · cutback
38 km
| Tue |
12 km at marathon pace — full race-day rehearsal
|
6:24 /km |
| Thu |
5×800 m at VMA pace, 90 s jog between
|
5:26–5:34 /km |
| Sun |
Long run with 2×5 km at marathon pace in the back half
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Peak
45 km
| Tue |
12 km at marathon pace — full race-day rehearsal
|
6:24 /km |
| Thu |
2×15 min at threshold, 3 min jog between
|
5:51–6:01 /km |
| Sun |
Long run with 2×5 km at marathon pace in the back half
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Taper
30.3 km
| Tue |
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Thu |
6 km at marathon pace — dress rehearsal, nothing more
|
6:24 /km |
| Sun |
Medium long run at easy pace — keep it relaxed
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Taper
21.9 km
| Tue |
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Thu |
6 km at marathon pace — dress rehearsal, nothing more
|
6:24 /km |
| Sun |
Medium long run at easy pace — keep it relaxed
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
Race
9.7 km
| Tue |
Easy run — legs turning, nothing more
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Thu |
Short easy run — stay loose
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Fri |
Shake-out jog with a few 20 s strides at the end
|
7:22–8:08 /km |
| Sun |
Race day — trust the plan
|
6:24 /km |
What first-timers get wrong
- Running every run too fast. Easy days at 7:22–8:08 per kilometre feel slow. That is how they are meant to feel.
- Adding kilometres when a week goes well. The plan already grows as fast as is sensible. Extra kilometres are how injuries start.
- Trying something new on race day. New shoes, a new gel, a new breakfast: test everything on long runs first.
- Starting with the crowd. The first kilometres are full of adrenaline. Run your pace, even if hundreds of people pass you. You will see many of them again after 30 km.
Choosing your first race
A flat course, a cool season and big crowds make a first marathon easier. Big city races such as Paris, Berlin, Valencia or Amsterdam tick those boxes. Browse the marathon calendar for dates, courses and time limits.
