Marathon training plans

This is the most-asked-for version, printed here so you do not have to click through. It runs 16 weeks at 3 runs a week, peaks at 32 miles, and the longest run is 18 miles — capped where recovery cost outgrows the benefit rather than at the race distance. The 12-week beginner marathon plan and the 20-week beginner marathon plan reach the same 32 miles peak over a shorter or longer build.

Every fourth week cuts back to about 70% of the previous long run. Adaptation happens during the easier week, not the hard one.

The most common way a marathon block falls apart is picking a plan that assumed more starting fitness than you had. Level first, then length.

• Beginner — you can run 3.1 miles without stopping and want to finish. Three runs a week.
• Intermediate — you have raced a marathon before and have a time in mind. Four runs, one tempo.
• Advanced — established base, specific goal. Five runs including intervals.

Cutback weeks. Roughly every fourth week drops to about 70% of the previous long run. Adaptation happens during the easier week, not the hard one.

Progression capped at 20%. No week's long run climbs more than a fifth above the last progressive week. Where a short plan cannot reach the usual peak inside that limit, it arrives at a lower peak instead of taking an unsafe step.

A real taper. The closing weeks come down hard and race week carries almost nothing. This is the part runners most often ignore and the one with the clearest evidence behind it.