This plan is designed to start at the end of a beginner marathon plan or after an intermediate half marathon plan. It is assumed athletes are able to run for 1 hour 30 as a regular long run and that athletes have a sound base of regular training before starting this plan.
The plan contains 4 sessions per week at first increasing to 5 sessions per week after the first couple of weeks of training. This means your body needs to be strong and injury resistant enough to do and recover from the work meaning you get stronger through the plan.
In general, the duration of the long runs and the overall weekly volume gradually increase along with an appropriate amount of speedwork throughout the plan.
I’m a high-performance triathlon and endurance coach with 20+ years of experience coaching athletes from beginner to elite level, including World and National Champions. With Master’s degrees in Exercise Physiology and Sport Psychology, I combine evidence-based training with mindset support to help athletes improve sustainably. I offer personalised coaching, race preparation, performance analysis, and athlete development across all triathlon, running, cycling and swimming distances.