18-Week Advanced Marathon Training Plan

The complete schedule — every workout, every recovery week, the taper — generated by the same open-source engine that powers the RunPlan app.

Is this the right plan? For experienced runners: 5 runs a week from day one, week 1 already at 3.4 hours with a 60-minute long run. Pick it if that first week reads like a normal week, not a stretch.

Wrong level? Same race as a 18-week beginner plan or a 18-week intermediate plan.

weeks

runs / week

workouts

7.2h

peak week (W12)

base · 4wspeed · 4wpeak · 7wtaper · 2w

Marathon training paces

The workouts below carry zones (Z2, Z4…) instead of fixed paces, because pace is personal — it should come from a race you’ve run, not a table. Enter one and the whole plan gets paces:

A race you’ve run recently

Easy & long runsZ1–Z2
5:15/km
Steady & marathon paceZ3
4:45/km
Threshold & tempoZ4
4:28/km
Intervals & repetitionsZ5
4:09/km

At this fitness, a trained-for marathon lands around 3:20:40 (4:45/km) — that is the race this plan is building you toward.

Prefilled with a typical result — enter your own race above.

Repetition paces, mile splits and equivalent times for every distance live in the full training pace calculator.

The full 18-week schedule

Free export:

- Ladder Intervals (10 segments)~28 min
  Warm-up 5min · 0:45/1:30/2:15/3:00/3:45/4:30 @ Z4 (30s jog) · Cool-down 5min
- Long Run~60 min
- Progression Run~47 min
  Warm-up 3min · 35:00 @ Z3 · 6:00 @ Z4 · Cool-down 3min
- Easy + Strides (4 x 25s)~39 min
  35:00 @ Z2 · 4 × 0:25 @ Z5 (60s jog)
- Easy Run~30 min
- Hill Repeats (8 x 60s)~40 min
  Warm-up 10min · 8 × 1:00 @ Z4 (90s jog) · Cool-down 10min
- Long Run~140 min
- Easy Run~55 min
- Easy + Strides (4 x 25s)~54 min
  50:00 @ Z2 · 4 × 0:25 @ Z5 (60s jog)
- Easy Run~30 min
- Mile Repeats (4 x 1mi)~56 min
  Warm-up 10min · 4 × 6:00 @ Z4 (3:00 jog) · Cool-down 10min
- Long Run~60 min
- Easy + Strides (4 x 25s)~54 min
  50:00 @ Z2 · 4 × 0:25 @ Z5 (60s jog)
- Easy Run~45 min
- Hill Repeats (10 x 75s)~50 min
  Warm-up 10min · 10 × 1:15 @ Z4 (1:45 jog) · Cool-down 10min
- Long Run~140 min
- Progression Run~47 min
  Warm-up 3min · 35:00 @ Z3 · 6:00 @ Z4 · Cool-down 3min
- Easy Run~80 min
- Easy + Strides (4 x 25s)~39 min
  35:00 @ Z2 · 4 × 0:25 @ Z5 (60s jog)
- Ladder Intervals (12 segments)~61 min
  Warm-up 5min · 1:30/1:45/2:00/2:15/2:30/2:45/3:00/3:15/3:30/3:45/4:00/4:15 @ Z5 (90s jog) · Cool-down 5min
- Mile Repeats (6 x 1mi)~74 min
  Warm-up 10min · 6 × 6:00 @ Z4 (3:00 jog) · Cool-down 10min
- Progressive Long Run~100 min
  60:00 @ Z2 · 40:00 @ Z3
- Easy Run~55 min
- Easy Run~30 min
- Hill Repeats (12 x 90s)~62 min
  Warm-up 10min · 12 × 1:30 @ Z4 (2:00 jog) · Cool-down 10min
- Mile Repeats (4 x 1mi)~56 min
  Warm-up 10min · 4 × 6:00 @ Z4 (3:00 jog) · Cool-down 10min
- Long Run~140 min
- Easy + Strides (4 x 25s)~54 min
  50:00 @ Z2 · 4 × 0:25 @ Z5 (60s jog)
- Easy Run~55 min
- Time Trial (15min)~35 min
  Warm-up 10min · 15:00 @ Z4 · Cool-down 10min
- Threshold Run (3 x 10min)~47 min
  Warm-up 10min · 3 × 10:00 @ Z4 (60s jog) · Cool-down 5min
- Progressive Long Run~100 min
  60:00 @ Z2 · 40:00 @ Z3
- Easy Run~45 min
- Hill Repeats (12 x 90s)~62 min
  Warm-up 10min · 12 × 1:30 @ Z4 (2:00 jog) · Cool-down 10min
- Threshold Run (3 x 10min)~47 min
  Warm-up 10min · 3 × 10:00 @ Z4 (60s jog) · Cool-down 5min
- Long Run~140 min
- Medium-Long Run~110 min
- Easy + Strides (4 x 25s)~54 min
  50:00 @ Z2 · 4 × 0:25 @ Z5 (60s jog)
- Yasso 800s (6 x 800m)~56 min
  Warm-up 10min · 6 × 3:00 @ Z4 (3:00 jog) · Cool-down 10min
- Marathon Pace (20min)~35 min
  Warm-up 10min · 20:00 @ Z3 · Cool-down 5min
- Long Run~140 min
- Easy + Strides (4 x 25s)~54 min
  50:00 @ Z2 · 4 × 0:25 @ Z5 (60s jog)
- Easy Run~55 min
- Time Trial (25min)~45 min
  Warm-up 10min · 25:00 @ Z4 · Cool-down 10min
- Threshold Run (3 x 10min)~47 min
  Warm-up 10min · 3 × 10:00 @ Z4 (60s jog) · Cool-down 5min
- Long Run~140 min
- Progression Run~47 min
  Warm-up 3min · 35:00 @ Z3 · 6:00 @ Z4 · Cool-down 3min
- Easy Run~55 min
- Intervals (8 segments)~36 min
  Warm-up 5min · 8 × 2:00 @ Z5 (90s jog) · Cool-down 5min
- Marathon Pace (2 x 40/50min)~110 min
  Warm-up 10min · 40:00 @ Z3 · 5:00 @ Z2 · 50:00 @ Z3 · Cool-down 5min
- Long Run~140 min
- Easy Run~45 min
- Yasso 800s (8 x 800m)~76 min
  Warm-up 10min · 8 × 3:30 @ Z4 (3:30 jog) · Cool-down 10min
- Race Rehearsal (60min @ MP)~135 min
  45:00 @ Z2 · 60:00 @ Z3 · 30:00 @ Z2
- Medium-Long Run~110 min
- Easy + Strides (4 x 25s)~54 min
  50:00 @ Z2 · 4 × 0:25 @ Z5 (60s jog)
- Easy Run~55 min
- Time Trial (25min)~45 min
  Warm-up 10min · 25:00 @ Z4 · Cool-down 10min
- Race Rehearsal (75min @ MP)~150 min
  50:00 @ Z2 · 75:00 @ Z3 · 25:00 @ Z2
- Medium-Long Run~75 min
- Easy Run~80 min
- Medium-Long Run~80 min
- Intervals (8 segments)~36 min
  Warm-up 5min · 8 × 2:00 @ Z5 (90s jog) · Cool-down 5min
- Race Rehearsal (90min @ MP)~190 min
  80:00 @ Z2 · 90:00 @ Z3 · 20:00 @ Z2
- Easy Run~80 min
- Medium-Long Run~120 min
- Yasso 800s (6 x 800m)~56 min
  Warm-up 10min · 6 × 3:00 @ Z4 (3:00 jog) · Cool-down 10min
- Marathon Pace (2 x 40/50min)~110 min
  Warm-up 10min · 40:00 @ Z3 · 5:00 @ Z2 · 50:00 @ Z3 · Cool-down 5min
- Progressive Long Run~145 min
  105:00 @ Z2 · 40:00 @ Z3
- Easy + Strides (4 x 25s)~39 min
  35:00 @ Z2 · 4 × 0:25 @ Z5 (60s jog)
- Mile Repeats (4 x 1mi)~56 min
  Warm-up 10min · 4 × 6:00 @ Z4 (3:00 jog) · Cool-down 10min
- Long Run~140 min
- Progression Run~47 min
  Warm-up 3min · 35:00 @ Z3 · 6:00 @ Z4 · Cool-down 3min
- Easy + Strides (4 x 25s)~39 min
  35:00 @ Z2 · 4 × 0:25 @ Z5 (60s jog)
- Easy Run~45 min
- Threshold Run (2 x 12min)~40 min
  Warm-up 10min · 2 × 12:00 @ Z4 (60s jog) · Cool-down 5min
- Long Run~140 min
- Easy Run~45 min
- Easy Run~25 min
- Easy Run~25 min
- Progression Run~47 min
  Warm-up 3min · 35:00 @ Z3 · 6:00 @ Z4 · Cool-down 3min
- Easy Run~45 min
- Easy Run~25 min

How this marathon plan is built

Weekly running time starts around 2 hours and peaks at 7.2 in week 12, with 7 recovery weeks spaced through the build. The longest single run is 190 minutes, in week 14 — then the taper brings you to the start line fresh.

This plan is generated by RunPlan's open-source training engine, which encodes the classic coaching canon: Jack Daniels' pacing and intensity distribution, Pete Pfitzinger's long-run progressions, and Hal Higdon's instinct for plans a normal person can finish. The structure is periodized — base, sharpening, peak, taper — with deload weeks on a regular cadence and weekly load ramps kept inside safe bounds. The advanced version trains close to the classic book schedules: higher volume, regular quality, race rehearsals, and long runs that respect Pfitzinger more than your calendar. For the marathon, the long-run progression is the spine of the plan, with marathon-pace segments folded in as race day approaches.

You can read the actual generator on GitHub — this exact schedule is its output, not an editor’s spreadsheet. The deeper story is in how the plans actually work.

What you’ll be running

Easy runs31
Long runs19
Tempo & threshold12
Intervals & hills8
Other quality7
Race rehearsals & time trials6

Common questions

How many days a week does this marathon plan require?

5 runs per week for 18 weeks — 83 workouts in total. The biggest week is week 12 at about 7.2 hours of running.

What is the longest run in this marathon plan?

190 minutes, in week 14. The long run builds gradually and is cut back on recovery weeks — you never jump to the peak, you arrive at it.

How many hours a week does it take?

Between about 2 and 7.2 hours of running, depending on the week — the plan ramps up through the build and drops sharply in the taper and on the 7 built-in recovery weeks.

Can I download this plan as a PDF or add it to my calendar?

Yes, free: print or save the full schedule as a PDF, download it as a .ics calendar file anchored to your start date, or export a CSV — the buttons are right above the schedule. The app runs the same plan from your Apple Watch, with your paces and haptic cues.

What paces should I run these workouts at?

Enter a recent race result in the paces block on this page — every zone in the plan gets a pace, plus a projected marathon time. Deriving paces from a result you have actually run (Daniels' VDOT method) beats copying a table; the app does the same automatically and re-derives them as you get fitter.

Is this plan really free?

Yes. This page shows the real plan, generated by the same open-source engine the RunPlan app uses. The app itself is also free — no subscription, no locked weeks — and runs every workout from your Apple Watch with live intervals and pace targets.

What if I miss a week?

Do not try to make missed volume up — that is how injuries happen. Rejoin the plan where the calendar says you are, and treat the first week back as easier than written. Recovery weeks are built in on a regular cadence, which absorbs most real-life interruptions.