What a marathon needs
Fatigue resistance. The plan's peak phase is built on long runs that finish at marathon pace, growing from 8 to 16 km of marathon pace inside the run, plus alternations and fast-finish long runs. Mid-week you run marathon-pace blocks and threshold sessions.
The long run is capped at 34 km and three hours. Every run over 90 minutes carries a fuelling reminder because training the gut to take 60 to 90 g of carbohydrate per hour is part of marathon preparation.
Weeks and days
Twelve weeks minimum, sixteen by default, up to twenty-four. Four days a week is the practical minimum for a first marathon; five or six days add the easy volume that makes the long runs feel normal. Every fourth week is a recovery week.
The taper
Two weeks. The first has a dress rehearsal long run with 10 km at marathon pace in your race kit, with race-day breakfast and fuelling. Race week is short: a few marathon-pace reps mid-week, a shakeout the day before, then the race.
Sample plans by level
How it works
- 1Pick your race date or week count. Enter the race date and the plan counts back to next Monday, or choose the number of weeks. The marathon default is 16 weeks.
- 2Choose your running days. Three to six days per week and the day you want your long run. The plan spaces the hard days so they never touch.
- 3Enter a recent race. Any distance from 1500 m to the marathon. It sets your VDOT and every training pace. No recent race? Pick a level and run the week-1 time trial.
- 4Get the plan and the PDF. Every week, every session with paces, purpose and distance. Download the PDF, copy the link, or come back after a retest to refresh the paces.
Frequently asked questions
How are the training paces set?
From your recent race with Jack Daniels' VDOT equations: the same maths as the VDOT calculator on this site. Easy, marathon, threshold, interval and repetition paces all follow from one result. The plan trains you at your current fitness, not at your goal, because that is what your body can absorb today.
I have no recent race. Can I still get a plan?
Yes. Pick beginner, intermediate, advanced or sub-elite and the plan schedules a 5k time trial in week 1. Enter the time on the plan page and every pace appears. Until then sessions are shown by duration and effort.
Why is so much of the plan easy running?
Because that is what the evidence shows works. Elite and recreational data alike point to roughly 80 percent of running at low intensity, with the remaining hard sessions done properly hard. The plan reports its own easy, moderate and hard split so you can see it.
What if I miss a week?
Skip it and carry on with the plan as scheduled. Never cram two weeks into one. If you miss two weeks or more, restart at the week you left with one easier week first.
My goal is faster than what my recent race predicts. What now?
The plan shows both numbers and the gap in percent. Paces are set from the race, because training at a goal you cannot yet run is how people get hurt. Retest at the end of the build phase, enter the new time, and the plan updates the paces.
How long is the longest run?
Up to 34 km or three hours, whichever comes first, three weeks before the race. The dress rehearsal two weeks out is shorter. The exact number depends on your weekly volume; the plan never asks for a long run above about 45 percent of the week.
Sources
- Daniels J. Daniels' Running Formula, 3rd ed. Human Kinetics, 2014. Training paces, quality caps, phase model.
- Pfitzinger P, Douglas S. Advanced Marathoning, 3rd ed. Human Kinetics, 2020. Mesocycles, long-run share, marathon-pace runs.
- Bosquet L, et al. Effects of tapering on performance: a meta-analysis. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2007;39(8):1358-1365.
- Riegel PS. Athletic records and human endurance. American Scientist 1981;69(3):285-290.
- Seiler S. What is best practice for training intensity and duration distribution in endurance athletes? Int J Sports Physiol Perform 2010;5(3):276-291.
- Stöggl T, Sperlich B. Polarized training has greater impact on key endurance variables than threshold, high intensity, or high volume training. Front Physiol 2014;5:33.
- Casado A, et al. World-class long-distance running performances are best predicted by volume of easy runs and deliberate practice of short-interval and tempo runs. J Strength Cond Res 2021;35(9):2525-2531.
- Haugen T, et al. The training characteristics of world-class distance runners. Sports Med Open 2022;8:46.
- Billat VL, et al. Intermittent runs at the velocity associated with maximal oxygen uptake enable subjects to remain at VO2max longer than intense but submaximal runs. Eur J Appl Physiol 2000;81(3):188-196.
- Rønnestad BR, et al. Superior performance improvements in elite cyclists following short-interval vs effort-matched long-interval training. Scand J Med Sci Sports 2020;30(5):849-857.
- Paavolainen L, et al. Explosive-strength training improves 5-km running time by improving running economy and muscle power. J Appl Physiol 1999;86(5):1527-1533.
- Barnes KR, Kilding AE. Strategies to improve running economy. Sports Med 2015;45(1):37-56.
- Maunder E, et al. The importance of durability in the physiological profiling of endurance athletes. Sports Med 2021;51(8):1619-1628.
- Jones AM. The fourth dimension: physiological resilience as an independent determinant of endurance exercise performance. J Physiol 2024;602(17):4113-4128.
- Jeukendrup AE. Training the gut for athletes. Sports Med 2017;47(Suppl 1):101-110.
- Nielsen RØ, et al. Excessive progression in weekly running distance and risk of running-related injuries. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2014;44(10):739-747.
Last updated 6 September 2026.