MARATHON

Marathon training plans, built for your goal

Marathon training lives or dies on the long run progression — go too far too fast and you're injured before race day, too conservative and you hit the wall at 30km. SportBlox builds your marathon training plan around your goal time, current weekly mileage and race date, and works with your Strava data.

Who it's for

Who it's for

First marathon finish

A conservative mileage build focused on completing the distance injury-free, not chasing pace.

Chasing a goal time

Threshold and marathon-pace work layered onto a higher-mileage base to target a specific finish time.

Coming back from injury

A cautious return-to-running progression that rebuilds mileage without repeating the mistake that caused it.

Sample week

A week of marathon training

Example: a sub-4-hour goal runner twelve weeks from race day. Your own plan is built around your event, level and schedule.

Sample week
6 sessions
Total time
6h 10m
MON
Easy run 8km recovery pace
45 min
TUE
Speed 6×800m @ 5K pace
55 min
WED
Easy run + strides Endurance
40 min
THU
Tempo 8km @ goal marathon pace
50 min
FRI
Rest Full recovery day
SAT
Long run 26km progressive
150 min
SUN
Recovery easy shakeout or cross-train
30 min
Personalisation

How SportBlox personalises it

Your goal & event date

Sessions build toward the specific goal and date you set, with a taper if you're racing or competing.

Your skill level

Volume and intensity scale to where you actually are, from Inexperienced to Professional.

Your stated weaknesses

Tell SportBlox about things like fading pace after 30km, long run fuelling, shin and calf niggles from mileage jumps and the plan weights sessions toward fixing them.

Your schedule

The plan fits the days and time you say you have — not an idealised training week.

Works with Strava

Connect Strava and your logged sessions feed back into pacing and progression.

For coaches

Coaching a marathon team?

SportBlox builds your team's training plan around the squad as a whole — its goals, weaknesses and upcoming events — and you review and refine every session before your athletes see it.

For coaches
FAQ

Marathon training plan FAQ

How many days a week should I run for a marathon?

Most plans use 4-5 runs a week, but SportBlox scales this to how many days you tell it you have without forcing a schedule you can't sustain.

How does it build up my weekly mileage safely?

It increases long-run and total distance gradually from your current base, with periodic easier weeks to absorb the load and cut injury risk.

Does it work with Strava for pacing?

Yes — connect Strava and your logged runs feed back into pacing and long-run progression.

Is this suitable for a first marathon?

Yes, set your goal to finishing rather than a time and the plan prioritises conservative mileage and injury prevention.

Will it taper before race day?

Yes — add your race as an event and the final two to three weeks reduce volume while keeping some race-pace sharpness.

What if I miss a long run?

Tell SportBlox and it adjusts the following week rather than trying to cram the missed mileage in.

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