12-Week Marshall University Marathon Training Plan

Huntington, WVNovember 1, 2026

Start around August 9, 2026. The calendar below gives each phase a real date, then the course guidance shows where to make the build specific to Marshall University Marathon.

The Marshall University Marathon finishes on the field at Joan C. Edwards Stadium, and the race hands you a football to carry across the goal line. To get there you run the loop twice, which means passing the stadium at halfway and heading straight back out while other runners are finishing.

Race day
November 1, 2026
Start window
August 9, 2026
Runway
12 weeks
Course
Mostly Flat · Multiple Loops
Plan choice
Current training

Does this window fit your starting point?

Use this window when your recent training is steady and the opening week will not be a mileage jump. If you are returning after a long break, twelve weeks is too little room to rebuild and peak at the same time.

  • Your weekly mileage has been consistent for the last six to eight weeks.
  • You have completed recent long runs and do not need to rebuild from three easy miles.
  • You can protect the same number of run days from week one through race week.
  • You are prepared to begin race-specific work early instead of using a long base phase.

The 12-week Marshall University Marathon calendar

These dates define the job of each phase. Your current mileage, recent longest run, experience, goal, and available days still decide the actual workouts inside them.

Settle

Weeks 1–2

Aug 10, 2026–Aug 23, 2026

Hold close to your current volume, establish the weekly rhythm, and make sure the opening load is honest.

Build

Weeks 3–7

Aug 24, 2026–Sep 27, 2026

Grow the long run and weekly work with step-back weeks intact. There is no room to repay missed mileage.

Peak

Weeks 8–10

Sep 28, 2026–Oct 18, 2026

Complete the most race-specific long runs, rehearse fueling, and practice the terrain that will decide the final 10K.

Taper

Weeks 11–12

Oct 19, 2026–Nov 1, 2026

Reduce volume, keep the routine familiar, and arrive on race day without trying to squeeze in one more big week.

Make the window specific to Marshall University Marathon.

Course-specific work starts early in a 12-week build. Put the race's terrain and expected conditions into long runs once the opening weeks feel controlled, without adding extra hard days.

Read the full race guide

How to train for the Marshall University Marathon

Train for Marshall by rehearsing the halfway moment. A double loop brings you back past the stadium at 13.1 miles and sends you out again while other people are collecting medals, and that is the hardest thing about this race. The terrain, at 354 feet of climb over 26.2 miles, is not.

Make the rehearsal literal. Two or three times in the block, run a long run as two laps of the same route, passing your car or your front door at halfway, and run the second lap slightly faster than the first. That's precisely the skill this course asks for, and you cannot build it on point to point routes.

Add solo work. With 379 finishers in 2025, the back half of the second lap gets genuinely empty, so put at least three long runs in your block alone at goal effort with no group and no pacer. Generating your own rhythm is a trainable skill and this course will ask for it around mile 20.

Then rehearse the surface. Run some goal pace work on crushed limestone or packed gravel so the switch off pavement in Ritter Park doesn't cost you rhythm the second time through, when your feet have less patience for a change of footing.

Marshall University Marathon course facts

Course
Multiple Loops · Mostly Flat · Mostly on Road/Pavement
Elevation gain / loss
354 ft gain, 357 ft loss
Highest / lowest point
567 ft / 531 ft
Marathon finishers
379 in 2025 (small field)
Boston qualifier
Certified Boston qualifying course
Finishers running a qualifying time
13.5% in 2025
Typical race morning
44°F at the start, 84% humidity, clear
Race day high / low
58°F / 39°F on average

Sources

Let your current training decide the actual plan.

Current mileage, recent longest run, marathon experience, goal, and available days determine which plans rank first. After you choose and subscribe, Stride dates every workout through November 1, 2026.

Build My Plan

12-week Marshall University Marathon plan questions, answered.

When should I start a 12-week Marshall University Marathon plan?

The 2026 Marshall University Marathon is scheduled for November 1, 2026, so the 12-week window opens around August 9, 2026. Treat that as the outside edge of the window, then line week one up with the plan's normal weekly rhythm.

Is a 12-week plan long enough for the Marshall University Marathon?

Use this window when your recent training is steady and the opening week will not be a mileage jump. If you are returning after a long break, twelve weeks is too little room to rebuild and peak at the same time. The course does not change the opening load you can handle, so choose from your current mileage and recent longest run before adding race-specific terrain.

How should I prepare for the Marshall University Marathon course in 12 weeks?

Course-specific work starts early in a 12-week build. Put the race's terrain and expected conditions into long runs once the opening weeks feel controlled, without adding extra hard days. Train for Marshall by rehearsing the halfway moment. A double loop brings you back past the stadium at 13.1 miles and sends you out again while other people are collecting medals, and that is the hardest thing about this race. The terrain, at 354 feet of climb over 26.2 miles, is not.

What if the 12-week Marshall University Marathon window has already started?

Do not double weeks or cram missed mileage into the remaining calendar. Use your current mileage, recent longest run, experience, goal, and available days to choose a plan that can enter at an appropriate point while preserving the taper.

Is the Marshall University Marathon a double loop?

Yes. Marathoners run the half marathon loop twice, starting on 3rd Avenue beside Joan C. Edwards Stadium and finishing inside the stadium at the goal line. Passing the finish area at halfway and heading back out is the mental test of this race, and it's worth rehearsing in training.

Is the Marshall University Marathon flat?

Yes. The course gains about 354 feet across 26.2 miles and stays between 531 and 567 feet of elevation, running through downtown Huntington, alongside the Ohio River and through Ritter Park. The race calls it flat and fast and the profile agrees. There's no hill here to train for.

Put the 12-week window against your actual race.

Each page counts back from race day, maps the 4 phases to real dates, and applies the window to that course and its typical conditions.