There are 18 English marathon plans in the catalog. That sounds like a lot, but they're really just four decisions. Answer them in order and you'll land on one.
The second question is the one that matters most, and it's the one most runners skip: don't choose by goal time, choose by the volume you're running now. A plan built around 110 km weeks won't make you faster if you're coming off 50. It'll injure you in week six.
1. How many weeks until race day?
Two options, and the calendar usually decides for you:
- 18 weeks — if you have four months or more. This is the full block: base, build, peak and taper, with enough slack to lose a week to illness or travel without losing the plan.
- 12 weeks — if the race is three months out. It works, but it assumes you're already running consistently. It is not a plan for starting from zero.
If you're inside 12 weeks and not currently training, this isn't the race for this cycle. That's the least popular conversation I have with athletes and the one that prevents the most injuries.
2. What weekly volume are you actually running?
This defines everything else. The plans split into three levels by weekly volume, not by ambition:
| Level | Weekly volume | Who it's for |
|---|---|---|
| Base | under 90 km / 55 mi | First marathon, or returning after a break |
| Build | 90–110 km / 55–68 mi | You've run a marathon and want a faster one |
| Peak | over 110 km / 68 mi | Experienced runner chasing a personal best |
What that costs you in actual hours. These come from the structured workouts inside the plans themselves, not from an estimate:
Base ≈ 6 h/week · Build ≈ 8 h/week · Peak ≈ 9 h/week (median across 23 marathon plans).
If you look at your week and can't find 8 hours, don't buy a Build plan. The gap between Base and Peak is about 3 hours a week for four months — roughly 50 hours. It's a scheduling decision as much as a fitness one.
3. What do you train by?
The same plan exists in different versions depending on what you use to control intensity. This isn't a detail — it's what makes a plan executable rather than frustrating.
- Heart rate — if you have a watch with a monitor and nothing else. The default, and the most robust.
- Pace — if you run mostly flat terrain and know your times. More direct, but heat, wind and hills all lie to you.
Either works. What doesn't work is training by feel and expecting precision. If you haven't tested yet, start there — the training zones guide covers how to find yours.
4. Do you want strength work included?
Several plans come in a version with a gym routine built into the week. Strength isn't optional for a marathon — it's what holds your form together when fatigue arrives at mile 20. The only good reason to take the running-only version is that you already have a strength routine you don't want to disturb.
The plans, by your answers
With four answers you have your plan. All of them run through to race day.
First marathon — Base
12 Week Marathon Base: Heart Rate 💓 (Beginner Vol: <90km)
12 weeks, heart rate. The starting point if you're running consistently but under 90 km a week.
US$ 49.99
18 Week Marathon Base: Heart Rate 💓 (Beginner Vol: <90km)
18 weeks, heart rate. The full block — more room to build base before the hard phase. If it's your first marathon and you have the time, this is the one I'd pick.
US$ 59.99
18 Week Marathon Base: Run 🏃 + Gym Lifting 🏋️ (Beginner <90km)
18 weeks, pace based, with gym work built in. Same progression, strength included.
US$ 59.99
Going faster — Build
12 Week Marathon Build: Heart Rate 💓 (Intermediate Vol: 90-110km)
12 weeks, heart rate. For runners who've done a marathon and hold 90–110 km a week.
US$ 49.99
18 Week Marathon Build: Heart Rate 💓 (Intermediate Vol: 90-110km)
18 weeks, heart rate. The same progression with six more weeks of building.
US$ 59.99
18 Week Marathon Build: Run 🏃 + Gym Lifting 🏋️ (Intermediate 90-110km)
18 weeks, pace based, with gym work built in.
US$ 59.99
Chasing a personal best — Peak
12 Week Marathon Peak: Heart Rate 💓 (Advanced Vol: 110km+)
12 weeks, heart rate. High volume, assumes 110 km+ weeks are already routine.
US$ 49.99
18 Week Marathon Peak: Heart Rate 💓 (Advanced Vol: 110km+)
18 weeks, heart rate. The longest and most demanding block in the catalog.
US$ 59.99
18 Week Marathon Peak: Run 🏃 + Gym Lifting 🏋️ (Advanced 110km+)
18 weeks, pace based, with gym work built in.
US$ 59.99
Running more than one plan this year? A marathon plan is US$ 49.99–59.99. The All-Access membership is US$ 39.99 a month and includes every plan in the catalog plus TrainingPeaks Premium, and you can switch plans without paying again. If a half or a cycling block is coming after the marathon, the maths changes quickly.
If none of those four answers fit
A pre-built plan assumes your week looks like the average week. If you travel often, if you're coming back from injury, or if your availability changes month to month, no plan in the catalog will quite fit — and forcing one is worse than not using it.
That's where 1:1 coaching makes sense: same method, but the plan is built around your actual week and adjusted when it changes. There are also other distances if the marathon isn't the right race this cycle.