Marathon Training Plan

Sub 4 hours Marathon

Distance: Marathon
Target pace: 5:41 /km
Available on: Free & Premium
20 weeks

Your paces

Tempo

5:03–5:33

min/km

Long / Slow

6:25–7:10

min/km

Intervals

4:26–4:48

min/km

About this plan

This plan runs over 20 weeks. You can start at any point — do all 20 weeks or jump in wherever feels right.

Try our Sub 4 hours Marathon plan.Congratulations on choosing your marathon plan. For some of you this will be your first attempt at a pretty challenging pace, for others this will be a goal you've been looking to achieve for some time. Whatever the reason, we see miles as the key to achieving your target time. This plan if followed fully will have you knocking on the door of 1000km before you get to race day. We don't all have the time to get out on the road 5 times a week. If that's you, prioritise the long runs. Spend a few hours over the weekend clocking up the easy miles. This is not to diminish the importance of the speed sessions and tempo runs which will be key to building strength and improving your VO2 max. Try to spread the runs out, and don't neglect rest days. Listen to your body and if it tells you to drop your 5km recovery run for some yoga or an afternoon with your feet up, it's probably right.

Ready to start training?

Download Dangelo and follow this plan today. Free on iOS & Android.

Example weeks

Week 4 35.0 km 5 runs
Monday

Rest

Tuesday

Intervals

4:26 - 4:48 / km

Wednesday

Easy 9km

6:05 - 6:35 / km

Thursday

Race pace

5:41 / km

Friday

Rest

Saturday

Recovery 5km

6:05 - 6:35 / km

Sunday

Progression

5:41 / km

Week 9 53.2 km 5 runs
Monday

Rest

Tuesday

Pyramid Intervals

4:26 - 4:48 / km

Wednesday

Easy 12km

6:05 - 6:35 / km

Thursday

Split Tempos

5:05 - 5:35 / km

Friday

Rest

Saturday

Recovery 5km

6:05 - 6:35 / km

Sunday

Long Run 18km

6:25 - 7:10 / km

Week 12 51.1 km 5 runs
Monday

Rest

Tuesday

Intervals

4:26 - 4:48 / km

Wednesday

Easy 13km

6:05 - 6:35 / km

Thursday

Tempo

5:05 - 5:35 / km

Friday

Rest

Saturday

Recovery 5km

6:05 - 6:35 / km

Sunday

Long Run 16km

6:25 - 7:10 / km

FAQs

What pace is a 4 hours marathon?

A 4 hours marathon is a pace of 5:41 minutes per km.