Welcome to our library of Marathon Training Plans for all Abilities!
Whether you’re a beginner who’s unsure how to train for a marathon, a pro looking to beat your personal best, or anywhere in-between – you’re in the right place.
The free marathon training plans we’ve developed have been refined and road-tested by tens of thousands of runners – each comes in various formats (printable file, PDF, Google Sheet / Excel) with accompanying guidance notes – and they’re all free to access, forever!
With our wide range of plans to choose from, you can pick a training plan which reflects your current state of running fitness, the amount of time you have available, and your marathon goals.
Our marathon programs are split into three categories – novice, intermediate, and advanced. From here, you can base your marathon training schedule around a specific marathon time goal, training time, or skill level.
Jump To The Right Marathon Plan For You:
Or, keep reading to get the low-down on how the plans work, who makes them, and how to pick the right one.
Marathon Training Plans: Frequently Asked Questions
- Who Has Designed These Training Plans?
- How Do These Plans Compare With Other Marathon Running Plans Available Online?
- Do You Have A Marathon Training App?
- If These Plans Are Really Free, How Do You Make Money?
How Long Is a Marathon?
A marathon is 26.2 miles or 42.195 kilometers.
How Long Does It Take To Train For A Marathon?
You should spend at least three months training for your marathon, although most good training plans are generally four to five months in length. This allows sufficient time to build up the required mileage base, without ramping up too quickly.
(we’ve got a 3-month plan below!).
How to train for a marathon?
To effectively train for a marathon, your program should include four to five runs per week, although some plans may only include three runs per week. One of these runs should be a longer run that gradually increases in distance each week., and the others should be shorter training runs.
Most good schedules will also include an additional day of cross-training per week to help keep the body flexible, strong, and prevent injury.
All of our plans come with accompanying guidance notes, as well as links to many more of our marathon resources that we’ve got on the site!
Related: Marathon Time Calculator: Predict Your Marathon Finish Time
How Do I Choose A Marathon Training Plan?
Deciding which marathon program is right for you is a personal choice – it depends on what your current running ability is, how long you have until your marathon, and what your marathon goals are.
Check out the notes alongside each plan below to help you choose.
Customisable, Marathon Training Programs
At Marathon Handbook, our aim is to help you to run far.
With that in mind, all our plans are completely free and totally customisable.
Do other commitments mean that you can only train on certain days?
Need to trim a couple of weeks off the time schedule?
No problem, edit the plan as you see fit.
Our training plans come in Google Sheets and PDF format; feel free to grab a copy of the Google Sheet, edit it, download it to Excel, print it – do whatever you want!
Beginner and Novice Marathon Plans
Couch To Marathon Training Plan
Our Couch to Marathon Plan is perfect for new runners!
Assuming you’re already an active person, you can go from couch to marathon in as little as six months.
The Couch to Marathon program is split into 4 distinct sections; 5k, 10k, half marathon, and marathon. Each of these is a separate stage, and should be treated as such. Feel free to pause between training plans.
6 Month Marathon Training Plan
Our 6 Month Marathon program is great for both new runners, and those will a little bit of experience under their belt.
Ideally you should be able to run 2-3 miles without stopping before you begin this plan, but you can choose to adopt a run/walk strategy too!
The plan doesn’t have a speed or pace focus at all – the objective is to get the required mileage in and get comfortably to the finish line.
20 Week (5 Month) Marathon Training Plan
Our 20 Week Marathon Plan for Beginners is well-suited for newer runners, or runners who are used to shorter distances.
It includes 3 mid-week runs, to be performed at a comfortable pace, and one long-slow run each weekend to build your max mileage. The plan includes one cross-training day per week and two rest days.
What Is The Best Training Plan for Beginners?
If you have plenty of time, I would highly recommend the 6 month marathon training plan we have. It’s designed so very gradually build up the mileage volume, so you shouldn’t get overwhelmed by the crazy workload.
Why Is There No Speed Work in the Beginner / Novice Plans?
Speed-based sessions (interval training, repeats, Yassos, etc.) are excellent for improving your marathon pace, but they add a lot of intensity to an already busy marathon agenda.
For novice runners, adding speedy sessions exponentially increases the risk of injury – so we don’t include it in our novice training plans.
Intermediate Marathon Plans
16 Week (4 Month) Marathon Training Plan – Ideal for First Marathons
Our 16 Week Marathon Program is designed for runners with some short-distance experience . . . perhaps you’ve run a few 5k’s or 10k’s and want to push yourself – either to hit a target time, or simply run the whole 26.2 miles.
The ‘race pace run’ is designed for those who have a specific target finish time in mind: during these runs, stick to your target pace. If you don’t have a target pace, maintain a comfortable, sustainable pace.
12 Week Marathon Training Plan
Our 12 Week Marathon Schedule is designed for those on a tight training timescale. 12 weeks is the shortest timeframe we’d generally recommend for anyone preparing for a marathon, as sufficient time is required to build up the base mileage without cramming in too many miles and causing overtraining injuries.
Good for runners who have established an initial running base, or have an existing good fitness level. You should be able to run 10km without stopping.
Sub 4-Hour Marathon Training Plan
Our Sub Four Hour Training Plan has been backwards-engineered from the goal of crossing the finish line in less than four hours, with 20 weeks to get there.
Great for runners who have established an initial running base, or have an existing good fitness level – and want to beat the 4hr time.
Sub 3:30 Marathon Training Plan
This plan gives you 20 weeks to get ready for your sub 3:30 marathon attempt.
This one is designed around the 3:30 goal, which is fairly ambitious – so good for runners who have previously booked a sub-4hr marathon and are looking to PR.
8 Week Marathon Training Plan
At only 8 weeks long, this is our shortest Marathon Training Plan. Therefore, it is suitable for those who already have a high fitness level.
This plan is designed for those who have a very tight training window before an upcoming race, who feel that they are experienced enough to train for a marathon in only 2 months.
Advanced Marathon Plans
Sub 3 Hour Marathon Training Plan
Our sub 3 hour marathon program is backwards-engineered around beating the three hour mark. with 20 weeks to get ready.
This goal isn’t for the faint of heart…be prepared to train 6 days a week, including several strength training sessions and speedwork sessions.
20 Week Advanced Marathon Training Plan
Our 20 week advanced marathon training schedule is designed for experienced runners who are really looking to push their limits; whether it’s a new PB or another ambitious target, this training regime is intense from week 1 and rachets things up from there. Note that it starts with a 10 mile long run, and includes 3 x 20 mile long runs.
20 Week Advanced 2 (INTENSE) Marathon Training Plan
Our 20 week Advanced 2 Marathon Program (INTENSE) is our toughest training plan.
It is based on the Advanced Plan, but replaces one of the rest days with an extra speed day. This means two days of speedwork per week; 5 days of running, one day of cross-training, and one rest day.
Note: this plan is for people aiming to crush it and reach for the ‘elite’ section. Even if you’ve run several marathons before, this training plan might not be for you.
Who Has Designed These Training Plans?
Hi!
I’m Thomas, a UESCA-certified running coach and ultra-runner.
I’ve worked with hundreds of runners and developed these training plans through ongoing research, my work with other marathon runners, and personal experience.
We’ve shared our training plans online for free since 2016.
We’re big believers in marginal gains and constantly improving what we do, so over the years we have continually revisited and refined each marathon training plan as our knowledge – and feedback from our runners – has improved.
These plans have now been used by over 100,000 runners – we share their success stories and testimonials over on Instagram.
We also have a dedicated Facebook group where runners discuss our plans, their challenges, and share their finish photos!
How Do These Plans Compare With Other Marathon Run Plans Available Online?
Alright, so you’ve probably googled ‘marathon training plan‘ and seen there are many sites offering plans.
We’re big fans, and friends, with many of these coaches . . . for years before I became a coach, I followed Hal Higdon‘s training plans for each of my marathons, and credit the Hal Higdon training plan for getting me through my first couple of marathons.
You’ll also find awesome plans from the likes of Runner’s World, Nike, Jeff Galloway, and major race organisers – I’d encourage you to check them out and compare them to our free plans before you commit to a specific plan. Always choose the plan that looks right for you.
Our plans differ from other plans you’ll find online in that they are:
#1. Customisable / Free To Edit
We’re big believers that there’s no one-size-fits-all training plan. You can grab a free copy of any plan and move things around to suit you using either Google Sheets, Excel, or similar software.
Want to cut off the first couple of weeks and jump in at week 3?
Need to move a weekly session to suit your existing commitments or family?
Need to adjust things because of an illness, injury, or just feeling the need for a break?
That’s why a customisable, dynamic training plan is so important – your training plan should work for you, not the other way around.
#2. Include Extensive Guidance Notes
Each plan includes a page of notes that walk you through the rationale of the plan, and how to perform every single workout.
We tell you how hard to push it (either in terms of a specific pace or RPE), long run pace, and give you tips for how to do each and every workout, and walk you through how to train towards your race pace.
#3. We Follow Up With More Helpful Material (All Free)
We’ve been helping runners get through their marathon training for many years now, so we know all the main sticking points and common problems that are faced.
So when anyone signs up for one of our plans, we stay in touch – after you get your plan, we’ll pepper your inbox every couple of days with tips and training strategies specific to your marathon journey. Not interested in extra material? Just unsubscribe at any time.
#4. We Want To Keep Getting Better
We’re constantly getting feedback from runners on our plans – everything from the exercise frequency to the clarity of information to the suitability of the runner’s experience level. We also work hard on the plan format to ensure it’s clear, easy to follow / edit / print off, and is best-suited to the runner.
That’s why we’re constantly revisiting our plans; we did a major overhaul in 2023 and are constantly making small tweaks to improve them.
#5. We Are A Support Community
Through our in-house coaches and runners, our Facebook group of over 7000 marathon runners, and our Instagram community, we want to make sure you’ve got the support you need for the long run as you take on your marathon training journey.
Don’t You Have a Marathon Training App?
Actually, we do!
We’ve partnered with TrainingPeaks to offer all of our training plans through their app, where you get more in-depth information about each session, can follow along with target pace / exertion levels in real-time, and log your training directly in the app itself.
We do charge for these premium training plans – but it’s less than half the price of a pair of running shoes, so if you’re interested, check out our TrainingPeaks Marathon Training Plans.
If All This Is Really Free, How Do You Folks Make Money?
We keep ourselves going by charging for a couple of premium products we’ve put out there: our TrainingPeaks Training Plans , and our Marathon Training Masterclass.
The Masterclass is designed for any runner who really wants to dive deep into their marathon training: it includes over 6 hours of video tutorials on everything from injury prevention, nutrition, race day strategies, and more.
But – feel free to just grab a free training plan and be on your way!
Training Plan Elements Explained:
Training Runs
These are standard runs, typically of 3 – 6 miles in length. They are used to build running form and time-on-your-feet. They should be performed at close-to your target race pace, or at a conversational pace if you have no target speed.
Long Runs
These are longer distance runs, designed to increase your stamina. They are purely about building up the length of time you can continue running – don’t worry about your pace, keep it an easy conversational level (more info). They’re the most important run of your week, whether you’re training for the New York Marathon or the London Marathon.
Speed Work / Interval Training
Run sessions designed to increase your speed! These come in various forms – Yasso’s, intervals, Fartleks, etc. They are useful if you have a speed-based goal, but if you don’t then no need to focus on them – they can be tiring (more info).
Cross Training
Any form of exercise which does not involve running, and preferably one which is low impact (avoid contact sports). Good forms of cross training include yoga, swimming, and strength training.