Training plan · 12 weeks · Mon 10 Aug – Sun 1 Nov 2026

Coastal City Marathon

race day

Sun 1 Nov

goal time

4:00:00

goal pace

5:41 /km

volume

30 → 56 km/wk

easy

6:10 – 6:40 /km

long runs, recovery · deliberately slow

goal pace

5:38 – 5:43 /km

blocks inside medium and long runs · the core of the plan

threshold

5:10 – 5:20 /km

tempo blocks, comfortably hard

interval

4:50 – 5:05 /km

kilometre repeats

Week rhythm

Tuesday: quality session: intervals or tempo
Tue after the run, or Wed: strength, ~40 min (see strength page)
Thursday: medium run, with goal-pace blocks from week 5
Sat or Sun: long run

Never strength training the day before the long run. Optional in build weeks: a fourth easy run of 5–6 km, if the body allows it.

The goal-pace blocks are the core. Keep easy kilometres genuinely easy (6:10+/km), otherwise the goal-pace work is not sustainable. Easy days done too fast are the most common reason a plan falls apart.

Checkpoint after the test (week 8)

≤ 1:52, comfortable: move the target to 5:34 /km, finish ~3:55
1:53 – 1:56: hold 4:00 pacing (5:41 /km)
> 1:57: start at 5:45–5:48 /km, speed up after 30 km if it feels right

When to back off

Pain that changes how you run: cut the session, don't push through. One missed week is nothing; six weeks injured ends the race.
Two weeks in a row not recovered from the long run: repeat the previous week instead of progressing.

Practical points

Coming back after a break: fitness returns quickly, but tendons and calves need 4–6 weeks. Stay deliberately under your old level in weeks 1–3.
Practise fuelling: from week 7 onwards, test gels and drinks in every long run exactly as you will use them on race day. Nothing new on race day.
Race shoes: at least three long runs in the shoes you plan to race in.
Travel and events: plan around them in advance. A session moved a day is always better than a session skipped.

Away block — pick what fits

For travel days marked on the calendar: run when it works (harbour, hotel, early morning), by feel. Missing one is not a problem — the weeks around it absorb it.

30–40 min easy (5–7 km) km · /km

30–40 min easy (5–7 km)km · /km

30 min fartlek: 8–10 × 1' brisk / 1' easykm · /km

Prepared 14 Aug 2026 · adjust the plan to your life, not the other way aroundrace-training-calendar · quick-html

Training calendar

Coastal City Marathon · goal 4:00 (5:41 /km)

week	mon	tue	wed	thu	fri	sat	sun
wk 1 10 – 16 Aug base target ~30 km logged km	10 Rest km/km	11 6 × 2' brisk, 2' jog (7 km) by feel, brisk km/km	12 Strength ~40 min km/km	13 8 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	14 Rest km/km	15 long run 12 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	16 Rest km/km
wk 2 17 – 23 Aug base target ~34 km logged km	17 Rest	18 3 × 8' tempo, 3' jog (9 km) 5:10 – 5:20 /km km/km	19 Strength ~40 min	20 9 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	21 Rest	22 long run 14 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	23 Rest
wk 3 24 – 30 Aug travel target 20 – 28 km logged km	24 Rest · pack running kit	25 6 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	26 away block: pick 2–3 Away	27 Away	28 Away	29 Away	30 back home · legs fresh? else 10–12 km 14 – 16 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km
wk 4 31 Aug – 6 Sep base target ~38 km logged km	31 Rest	1 Sep 5 × 1 km, 400 m jog (10 km) 4:50 – 5:05 /km km/km	2 Strength ~40 min	3 11 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	4 Rest	5 Rest	6 long run 17 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km
wk 5 7 – 13 Sep build target ~42 km logged km	7 Rest	8 3 × 10' tempo, 3' jog (10 km) 5:10 – 5:20 /km km/km	9 Strength ~40 min	10 first goal-pace blocks 12 km with 2 × 3 km at goal pace 5:38 – 5:43 /km km/km	11 Rest	12 long run 18 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	13 Rest
wk 6 14 – 20 Sep recovery target ~32 km logged km	14 Rest	15 5 × 2' brisk (8 km) by feel, brisk km/km	16 Strength ~40 min	17 10 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	18 Rest	19 keep this week honest 14 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	20 Rest
wk 7 21 – 27 Sep build target ~49 km logged km	21 Rest	22 3 × 3 km at goal pace, 1 km jog (11 km) 5:38 – 5:43 /km km/km	23 Strength ~40 min	24 12 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	25 Rest	26 test gels and drinks 26 km, last 5 km at goal pace 5:38 – 5:43 /km km/km	27 Rest
wk 8 28 Sep – 4 Oct test week target ~50 km logged km	28 Rest	29 6 × 1 km, 400 m jog (10 km) 4:50 – 5:05 /km km/km	30 Strength ~40 min	1 Oct 12 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	2 Rest	3 checkpoint · see page 1 Half marathon test + cool-down 5:20 – 5:25 /km km/km	4 Rest
wk 9 5 – 11 Oct recovery target ~30 km logged km	5 Rest	6 3 × 8' tempo (9 km) 5:10 – 5:20 /km km/km	7 Strength ~40 min	8 10 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	9 Rest	10 Family weekend	11 moved from Saturday 16 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km
wk 10 12 – 18 Oct peak week target ~56 km logged km	12 Rest	13 2 × 5 km at goal pace, 1 km jog (12 km) 5:38 – 5:43 /km km/km	14 Strength ~40 min	15 8 km easy 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	16 Rest	17 Rest · easy day before the long run	18 race-day fuelling · max 3h15 32 km, last 6 km at goal pace 5:38 – 5:43 /km km/km
wk 11 19 – 25 Oct taper target ~38 km logged km	19 Rest	20 5 × 1 km (10 km) 4:50 – 5:05 /km km/km	21 Strength — light	22 12 km with 2 × 4 km at goal pace 5:38 – 5:43 /km km/km	23 Rest	24 in race shoes 22 km, 8 km at goal pace in the middle 5:38 – 5:43 /km km/km	25 Rest
wk 12 26 Oct – 1 Nov race week target 15 + 42 km logged km	26 Rest	27 3 × 2' at goal pace (6 km) 5:38 – 5:43 /km km/km	28 Core & mobility	29 6 km easy + 4 × 100 m strides 6:10 – 6:40 /km km/km	30 Rest	31 Rest · feet up	1 Nov COASTAL CITY MARATHON 42.2 km · goal 4:00 5:41 /km finish time

easy goal pace tempo / threshold interval test away / event □ tick off with a marker · write kilometres and pace in the boxes, left of the unit

Coastal City Marathon · Sunday 1 November 2026race-training-calendar · quick-html

Strength training · weight log

1× per week, ~40 min · Tuesday after the run or Wednesday · never the day before the long run

note the weight used (kg) per week

exercise	sets × reps	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15
Goblet squat or Bulgarian split squatbase leg strength	3 × 8–10
Single-leg Romanian deadlifthip stability, hamstrings, balance	3 × 8 per leg
Hip thrust or glute bridgeglute strength = running economy	3 × 10
Calf raise, straight legcalf and achilles · injury prevention no. 1	3 × 12–15
Calf raise, bent knee (soleus)the soleus takes most of the load at goal pace	3 × 12
Side planklateral core stability	3 × 30–45 s per side
Pallof press (band or cable)anti-rotation core	3 × 10 per side

Progression: add weight gradually up to the peak week. Drop the session in a travel week, or do core work only; go lighter in the taper week.

Focus on stability and single-leg work. Technique before weight: the last repetition should be hard but clean. In the final two weeks, core and mobility only — no heavy lifting.

Coastal City Marathon · Sunday 1 November 2026race-training-calendar · quick-html