Sub-3:30 Marathon Plan · 30 Aug 2026

Weekly Rhythm — Every Week

Mon

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Wed

Quality run

Thu

Strength

Fri

Group 7 km

Sat

Long run

Sun

Full rest

Training Paces

Marathon Pace (MP)

4:55–5:00 /km

Goal race pace — learn this feeling

Easy / Long Run

5:50–6:20 /km

Fully conversational — hold it back

Tempo / Threshold

4:35–4:45 /km

Comfortably hard — 20–40 min max

Intervals (VO2max)

4:20–4:30 /km

Hard effort — short reps only

How This Plan Works

3 running days only (Wed, Fri, Sat). Monday and Sunday are full rest — no exceptions.
Long runs alternate hard / step-back every week. A big Saturday is always followed by a lighter Saturday the next week. No two consecutive big runs.
Friday is deliberately easy before every long run over 22 km — this is intentional, not lazy. Save the legs for Saturday.
All quality work (tempo, intervals, MP blocks) happens on Wednesday, mid-week, far from the long run.
Strength training (Tue/Thu) stays. In taper weeks, reduce load but keep the sessions.
From Week 8 onwards, practise race nutrition (gels/chews) on every long run over 90 min.
Optional tune-up half marathon: Week 7 (step-back week, long run is only 20 km). Race it at ~1:43–1:45 to gauge fitness.
Taper madness is real — Weeks 15–17 you will feel sluggish and restless. That is adaptation happening. Trust it.

Session Types

Easy Aerobic easy run Long Long run MP Marathon pace Tempo Threshold / tempo Intervals VO2max intervals Group Friday 7 km group loop Strength Outdoor strength session Rest Full rest

Phase 1 Base Weeks 1–5 · Establish the 3-run routine, introduce MP, long runs 16–22 km

Week 1 4–10 May 35 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

Easy

12 km easy + 4×100m strides at end

6:10–6:20 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km — easy effort, settle into the loop

Sat

Long

16 km easy

6:05–6:20 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 2 11–17 May 41 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

14 km — 3 km easy, 4 km at MP, 7 km easy

MP: 4:55–5:00 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km easy + 4×100m strides

Comfortable effort

Sat

Long

20 km easy

6:05–6:15 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 3 18–24 May Step-back 33 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

Easy

10 km easy — let the body adapt

6:10–6:25 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km — 6× short hill sprint on any rise in the loop, jog back

Short run = lighter Saturday

Sat

Long

16 km easy

6:05–6:20 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 4 25–31 May 43 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

Tempo

14 km — 2 km easy, 3×2 km tempo (90s jog), easy home

Tempo: 4:38–4:45 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km easy — easy before 22 km tomorrow

Sat

Long

22 km easy

5:55–6:10 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 5 1–7 June Recovery 35 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

Easy

10 km easy + 6×100m strides

6:15–6:25 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km easy — recovery week, no hard efforts

Sat

Long

18 km easy

6:05–6:20 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Phase 2 Build Weeks 6–9 · Tempo work, first 26 km run, alternating hard / step-back weeks

Week 6 8–14 June 45 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

14 km — 2 km easy, 6 km at MP, 6 km easy

MP: 4:55–5:00 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km easy — easy before 24 km tomorrow

Sat

Long

24 km easy

5:55–6:10 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 7 15–21 June Step-back 39 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

Tempo

12 km — 2×3 km tempo, 2 min rest between

Tempo: 4:38–4:45 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km — 4×800m at interval pace, 90s jog recovery

800m: 4:22–4:28 /km · light Sat = OK to push Fri

Sat

Long

20 km easy

6:00–6:15 /km · optional tune-up half marathon this week

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 8 22–28 June 49 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

16 km — 2 km easy, 8 km at MP, 6 km easy

MP: 4:55–5:00 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km easy — first 26 km run tomorrow, protect the legs

Sat

Long

26 km easy — start fuelling every 45 min from km 10

5:55–6:10 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 9 29 Jun – 5 Jul Recovery 35 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

Easy

10 km easy — absorb the build

6:10–6:25 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km easy — no hard efforts this week

Sat

Long

18 km easy

6:05–6:20 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Phase 3 Specific Weeks 10–13 · Marathon pace dominates Wednesday, long runs to 30 km, strict alternating weeks

Week 10 6–12 July 51 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

16 km — 2 km easy, 10 km at MP, 4 km easy

MP: 4:55–5:00 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km easy — 28 km tomorrow, protect the legs

Sat

Long

28 km easy — gel every 40 min from km 10

5:55–6:10 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 11 13–19 July Step-back 39 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

Tempo

12 km — 2 km easy, 3×2 km tempo (90s jog), easy home

Tempo: 4:35–4:42 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km — 4×1 km at threshold, 90s jog recovery

Threshold: 4:35–4:42 /km · lighter Sat allows this

Sat

Long

20 km easy

6:00–6:15 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 12 20–26 July 53 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

16 km — 2 km easy, 12 km at MP, 2 km easy

MP: 4:55–5:00 /km — this should feel controlled

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km easy — 30 km tomorrow, fully easy

Sat

Long

30 km easy — gel every 40 min from km 10

5:55–6:10 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 13 27 Jul – 2 Aug Step-back 41 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

12 km — 2 km easy, 5 km at MP, 5 km easy

MP: 4:55–5:00 /km

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km — 4×1 km at marathon pace, 90s rest

MP: 4:55–5:00 /km · lighter Sat = fine

Sat

Long

22 km easy

6:00–6:15 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Phase 4 Peak & Taper Weeks 14–17 · Peak long run 32 km, then volume drops sharply — trust the taper

Week 14 3–9 August Peak week 55 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength

Wed

16 km — 2 km easy, 10 km at MP, 4 km easy

MP: 4:55–5:00 /km — biggest MP block of the plan

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength

Fri

Group

7 km easy — 32 km tomorrow, fully easy

This is not the week to push Friday

Sat

Long

32 km — peak long run, all at easy pace

5:55–6:10 /km · gel every 40 min from km 10

Sun

Rest

Full rest — you've done the work

Week 15 10–16 August Taper 1 39 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Outdoor strength — reduce load slightly

Wed

12 km — 3 km easy, 4 km at MP, 5 km easy

MP: 4:55–5:00 /km — keep sharpness, drop volume

Thu

Strength

Outdoor strength — reduce load slightly

Fri

Group

7 km easy + 4×100m strides at end

Legs should start to feel springy

Sat

Long

20 km easy

6:00–6:15 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 16 17–23 August Taper 2 29 km

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Light strength only — mobility, no heavy loading

Wed

Easy

8 km easy + 4×100m strides

6:10–6:20 /km — stay sharp, stay fresh

Thu

Strength

Light strength — mobility focus

Fri

Group

7 km easy with friends — enjoy it

Sat

Long

14 km easy — last proper run before race week

6:05–6:20 /km

Sun

Rest

Full rest

Week 17 24–30 August Race week 11 km + race

Mon

Rest

Full rest

Tue

Strength

Very light — mobility only, 20 min max

Wed

Easy

6 km easy + 4×100m strides

Loose and sharp — no effort at all

Thu

Rest

Full rest — skip strength this week

Fri

Easy

5 km easy shake-out

Skip group run or go very easy

Sat

Rest

Complete rest — carb-load, hydrate, sleep well

Sun

Race

Marathon · 30 Aug 2026

Goal: 3:29:59 · 4:58 /km

Race Day Strategy

Start (0–5 km)

5:02–5:05 /km

Go out slightly conservative — adrenaline will feel fast

First half (5–21 km)

4:58–5:00 /km

Settle in. Fuel at km 10 and km 16

Middle (21–30 km)

4:58–5:00 /km

Stay patient — this is where most races are lost

Finish (30–42 km)

4:52–4:58 /km

Push from km 35 if legs allow — leave nothing behind

Halfway target

1:44:30–1:45:00

Slight negative split is the goal

Nutrition

Every 40 min

Same gels you trained with — from km 8 onwards