Training Distance
Sub-3 marathon, sub-1:30 half, 5K PR work, ultra long-run building.
22 articles · sorted by most recent
Building Your First Marathon Training Week: A Template for 3, 4 or 5 Days
Run 4 days a week if you can: one long run, one quality run, two easy runs. Three days works with cross-training, and five adds room. Here are all three weeks, with the real numbers behind them.
Long Run Too Hard? How Slow Your Easy and Long Runs Should Really Be
Easy runs should sit below your first ventilatory threshold, roughly 64% of top running speed. Here is a five-check test to see if your easy and long runs are too hard.
Should You Make Up a Missed Long Run? A Simple Decision Rule
Skip it or run it at its planned distance. Never add miles. In a 5,205-runner study, sessions over 10% longer than your longest recent run raised injury risk by 52% to 128%.
Can You Train for a Marathon in 12 Weeks? It Depends on These 3 Things
Yes, if you already run 3 to 4 days a week and about 25 to 32 km (15 to 20 miles). Starting below roughly 16 km a week? Aim to finish, not to PR, or pick a later race.
Half Marathon to Marathon: How Long Should You Wait and How to Build Up
No study sets the gap between a first half and a first marathon. Coaches say 12 to 18 weeks of building after 1 to 2 weeks of recovery, with a long run near 30 km.
Sub-2 Half Marathon Training Plan: Paces, Key Workouts and a 12-Week Structure
Breaking 2:00 means holding 9:09 per mile (5:41 per km) for 13.1 miles. That is about a 26:05 5K fitness level, built over 12 weeks with 24 to 36 miles a week.
Sub-4 Marathon Training Plan: What the Weeks Actually Look Like
A sub-4 marathon means 9:09 per mile for 26.2 miles. Most finishers run about 32 miles a week, four days a week, with long runs peaking at 18-20 miles.
Is My Marathon Plan Too Hard? 7 Warning Signs and What to Change
A useful rule of thumb: if easy runs sit 5+ beats higher at the same pace for two weeks, your marathon plan may be too hard. Here are 7 signs and the first change for each.
Marathon Training While Travelling for Work: How to Keep Your Plan on Track
A work trip won't wreck your marathon. Research shows you can cut volume 33-66% for up to 15 weeks and keep your endurance, if you keep one hard session.
Why Static Training Plans Fail Real Life (And What an Adaptive Plan Changes)
A missed session barely dents fitness. Panic does the damage. Research shows 12 days off cuts stroke volume about 10%, and cramming miles back in raises injury risk.
Half Marathon Training Plan for Busy Adults: 4 Days a Week, 12 Weeks
Four runs a week is enough for a half marathon. Build in 12 weeks to a 12-mile long run, cut volume 41-60% in a two-week taper, and skip make-up runs.
Missed a Week of Marathon Training: Exactly How to Adjust Your Plan (By Weeks to Race)
A week with zero training costs a marathoner about 4.25% on race day in a huge Strava study. Don't cram the miles. Resume at about 70% volume and protect your long run.
Missed Two Weeks of Half Marathon Training: Can You Still Race, and What to Cut
Two weeks off costs a runner about 5% of VO2max, and reported Strava marathon data suggests a race roughly 6% slower. You can still race if you cut make-up miles.
Reverse Periodization: Should Time-Crunched Cyclists Start With Intensity Instead of Base Miles?
Reverse periodization starts time-crunched cyclists with intensity, not base miles. Trials show it ties traditional training on power gains, but a 2025 study finds it doesn't guarantee durability past 2-3 hours.
How AthleteOS Predicts Your Marathon Finish Time From Training Data Alone (and Why That Beats a Static VDOT Calculator)
Riegel and VDOT calculators run once on an old race time. AthleteOS recomputes your marathon forecast every week from your fitness score, fatigue score, and training data.
Can ChatGPT or Claude Write Your Marathon Plan? What the 2026 Research Found
A 2026 study tested 8 AI chatbots on marathon plans: they nailed the 80/20 intensity split but missed weekly mileage, blurred skill levels, and gave shaky pacing advice.
How to Train for Back-to-Back Ultras in the Same Season: The CTL Recovery Curve Between Two 50-Mile Races
A 50-mile race needs about 18 days to repair muscle damage, not the 1-day-per-mile marathon rule. Here's the real fitness curve for 6, 8, and 10-week gaps between two ultras.
Block Periodization for Ultramarathon: Why the Classic Build-Peak-Taper Model Breaks Down Past 50 Miles
Marathon training plans fail ultrarunners because ultras are run at 50–70% VO2max — not 85%. Block periodization fixes this with a 24–30 week CTL buildup and inverted intensity sequencing.
Cycling as Marathon Cross-Training: The Aerobic Transfer That Works and the Running Adaptations It Can't Replace
Cycling keeps your VO2max intact during marathon training, but it won't fix your running economy — cyclists burn 21% more oxygen per stride than runners at the same speed.
How to Build a Self-Coached 16-Week Marathon Block Using Free Tools in 2026
A Pfitzinger-quality 16-week marathon block is possible without a coach or TrainingPeaks Premium — here's the free analytics stack and a week-by-week CTL blueprint to do it for $0.
What Pace Should My Long Runs Be? The Slower-Than-You-Think Marathon Long-Run Rule
Your long run should be 10–20% slower than marathon goal pace — and for runners targeting 4:30+, the standard 90-sec/mile rule may actually be too slow.
Sub-3 Marathon: The Physiology, the Mileage, and the Workouts That Actually Work
Sub-3 requires a 63 ml/kg/min VO2max, 55–75 miles per week, and pyramidal intensity (67.5% Zone 2) — not the polarized model most plans prescribe.