Do you have a fall marathon on your calendar? Picking the right training plan – whether it’s your first race or you’re trying for a personal best – will help you have a successful race day.
“People get hurt training for a marathon, not doing a marathon,” said Jordan Metzl, a sports medicine physician at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York who has completed 35 marathons.
Metzl and his colleagues tracked the training of 735 runners registered for the 2019 New York City Marathon, collecting data from nearly 50,000 training runs. They found that 40% of the athletes got injured during training, compared to 16% who were injured during or right after the race. A rapid increase in weekly running mileage was associated with a higher likelihood of injury.
Marathon training plans can range from 16 to 24 weeks, but some coaches advise 20 to 24 week plans regardless of ability. An average week should include easy running, one long run, a speed or hill workout and strength training.
Beyond that, different runners have different needs depending on their race goals. We spoke to top marathon experts about how to pick a training plan for five types of runners – beginners, racers recovering from an injury, runners with time goals, older athletes and those who just want to have fun on race day. Here’s their advice.
It’s your first marathon
The challenge: Prepare your body and mind for the amount of time you’ll be on your feet. Do that through weekly long runs that progressively build until a few weeks before the marathon.
Training: Beginners should start at least six months before the race. Look for a plan that includes regular runs and slowly increases weekly mileage. “People need a longer ramp up than they think,” Metzl said.
“You have to be more careful about the miles that you’re putting in because your body isn’t used to those miles,” said Cory Wharton-Malcolm, a running coach and author of “All You Need is Rhythm & Grit,” a memoir and guide to running for beginners. “When I was a beginner, I couldn’t run to the bottom of the road. So, that’s where my baseline was.”
What else to look for: Aerobic exercises, such as swimming or biking, can “alleviate some of the boredom” beginners might experience from running so many days a week, said Hal Higdon, a running coach, who’s run 111 marathons, and offers free online training plans.
Pro-tip: Use a run-walk program. Mix walking intervals with running to work in more miles and don’t set a time goal. Jeff Galloway, a longtime running coach and writer, helped popularize the run-walk method. “Finishing a marathon without a time goal is one of the most exhilarating experiences that people have in their whole life,” Galloway said.
You’re coming back from an injury
The challenge: Determine what caused the injury before you start training again. Re-injury often happens “because you’ve injured the part before, and you haven’t addressed why it happened in the first place,” said Metzl.
Training: To prevent re-injury, start training “a notch lower” than you normally would. Run three to four days a week, and use other days for an elliptical or swimming workout, said Greg McMillan, a running coach and exercise physiologist who offers personalized training plans.
What else to look for: Calculate the average weekly mileage from the past four weeks of training. Adding 20 to 30 percent more miles the next week “is likely safe,” said Brett Toresdahl, an associate professor and nonsurgical sports medicine specialist at University of Utah.
Pro-tip: Take the day off if your legs hurt and pain is forcing you to alter your gait. Never run with a limp.
“Training plans are just guidelines,” said Elizabeth Matzkin, the chief of women’s sports medicine at Mass General Brigham in Boston. “If your long run comes up on a weekend and you haven’t slept and work took over your life, you know what? It’s okay. Do it the next weekend.”
You have a time goal
The challenge: Pick a plan with challenging workouts designed to push your mental endurance, McMillan said. Condition your brain to be prepared for the level of fatigue you’ll feel late in the marathon.
Training: As you train for a marathon, sign up for shorter races, such as 5K, 10K and 15K events, and try to shave time at those distances. “It all trickles up to the marathon,” said Drew Wartenburg, a running coach with 25 years of experience.
What else to look for: Incorporate more strength training, and look for plans with tempo or speed workouts, Wharton-Malcolm said. During your training, try a few “dress rehearsals” where you eat and hydrate like you would on race day, McMillan said.
Pro-tip: Log your training week to week either in a journal or app to track your miles and pace. “Comparing yourself to yourself is always good,” Wartenburg said.
You’re an older runner
The challenge: Recovery between workouts and after long runs will take more time.
Training: Focus on dynamic stretching as well as gentle warm-ups and cool downs. Older runners may want to choose a plan with fewer days of running, more cross- and strength-training and more rest.
“For me, as an older master’s runner, stretching is now a part of my maintenance,” said Marcus Brown, a running coach and podcaster who has cut his own marathon time from around five hours to a less than three. “If I don’t stretch, my muscles get tightened up, and it’s creating too much tension in the body.”
What else to look for: Strength training is important for every runner but the older we get, the harder it is to maintain or build muscle mass, and running doesn’t build strength on its own, Metzl said.
Pro-tip: It may take an older runner one or two more days to recover from a long run, said McMillan. Successful older runners “modulate the frequency of hard workouts.”
You just want to enjoy the race
The challenge: Finding a training plan consistent enough for a solid performance, but not so grueling that you risk injury or stop having fun.
Training: A longer training plan will build a strong base so you can enjoy race day. Consider using the run-walk method for training and during the race, and add in “little rewards along the way,” Galloway said.
“I’m talking about running on a favorite trail every two weeks, running with friends every week,” Galloway said. “The fun really helps you along the journey.”
What else to look for: Runners who just want to complete the marathon, and enjoy it, can look for a training plan with just three weekly runs – one easy run, a speed workout and a long-run, Wharton-Malcolm said. On the other days of the week, they can incorporate “a bunch of cross-training,” cardio workouts like cycling, rowing or hiking.
Pro-tip: Find a group of like-minded runners training for the same race. Local running stores often host weekly runs where you can meet other runners at your pace, said Vanessa Peralta-Mitchell, the creator of Game Changers, a program that helps women of color become certified running coaches.
“Find a pub, or a bar, and have some food, have something to drink,” Wharton-Malcolm said. “Running isn’t fun unless you do things on a run to make it fun.”
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