16-Week Jersey City Marathon Training Plan

Jersey City, NJApril 18, 2027

Start around December 27, 2026. The calendar below gives each phase a real date, then the course guidance shows where to make the build specific to Jersey City Marathon.

The Jersey City Marathon runs you toward the half marathon finish line and then turns you away from it. Both races come north together down Washington Boulevard toward Newport Parkway, and at 4th Street the marathon field shifts across while the half runners peel off to finish. If you have never had to do that at 13 miles, it is worth knowing in advance.

Race day
April 18, 2027
Start window
December 27, 2026
Runway
16 weeks
Course
Mostly Flat · Multiple Loops
Plan choice
Current training

Does this window fit your starting point?

Use this window when you have a running base and want several weeks before the hardest marathon-specific work begins. The extra month over a 12-week plan creates more room for gradual long-run growth and recovery.

  • You run consistently enough that week one is a continuation, not a restart.
  • You want a distinct foundation phase before the biggest long runs.
  • You can protect your planned run days for roughly four months.
  • Your race date leaves the full window without forcing skipped weeks.

The 16-week Jersey City 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.

Foundation

Weeks 1–4

Dec 28, 2026–Jan 24, 2027

Establish repeatable weeks, keep most running easy, and begin extending the long run without forcing the pace.

Build

Weeks 5–10

Jan 25, 2027–Mar 7, 2027

Increase the weekly load, preserve step-back weeks, and introduce the terrain and effort the race will require.

Peak

Weeks 11–13

Mar 8, 2027–Mar 28, 2027

Complete the biggest race-specific weeks and use long runs to lock in fueling, pacing, and equipment.

Taper

Weeks 14–16

Mar 29, 2027–Apr 18, 2027

Bring volume down while keeping the weekly rhythm familiar. Training is finished before race week begins.

Make the window specific to Jersey City Marathon.

Use the first month to establish consistency, then make long runs progressively more specific to the race's terrain and conditions. The course rehearsal should grow with the plan, not appear all at once in peak week.

Read the full race guide

How to train for Jersey City

Training for the Jersey City Marathon is about pacing discipline and wind, not hills. The biggest climb rises roughly 60 feet and lands in the last third, when your legs are already loaded. Everything else is flat, which means people lose time here by starting too fast on ground that offers no resistance at all.

Two rehearsals pay for themselves. Run at least one long run that passes your car or your front door around 13 miles and keep going, because that is structurally what this race does to you at Newport Parkway. And finish long runs into a headwind on open ground instead of setting out into it while you are fresh. Race morning averages a northwest wind near 10 mph, and the closing miles run through Liberty State Park on Burma Road with the harbor on one side and nothing at all to block it.

Jersey City Marathon course facts

Course
Multiple Loops · Mostly Flat · Road/Pavement
Elevation gain / loss
383 ft gain, 383 ft loss
Highest / lowest point
68 ft / 4 ft
Marathon finishers
3,111 in 2026 (large field)
Boston qualifier
Certified Boston qualifying course
Finishers running a qualifying time
16.8% in 2026
Typical race morning
53°F at the start, 70% humidity, overcast
Race day high / low
61°F / 45°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 April 18, 2027.

Build My Plan

16-week Jersey City Marathon plan questions, answered.

When should I start a 16-week Jersey City Marathon plan?

The 2027 Jersey City Marathon is scheduled for April 18, 2027, so the 16-week window opens around December 27, 2026. Treat that as the outside edge of the window, then line week one up with the plan's normal weekly rhythm.

Is a 16-week plan long enough for the Jersey City Marathon?

Use this window when you have a running base and want several weeks before the hardest marathon-specific work begins. The extra month over a 12-week plan creates more room for gradual long-run growth and recovery. 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 Jersey City Marathon course in 16 weeks?

Use the first month to establish consistency, then make long runs progressively more specific to the race's terrain and conditions. The course rehearsal should grow with the plan, not appear all at once in peak week. Training for the Jersey City Marathon is about pacing discipline and wind, not hills. The biggest climb rises roughly 60 feet and lands in the last third, when your legs are already loaded. Everything else is flat, which means people lose time here by starting too fast on ground that offers no resistance at all.

What if the 16-week Jersey City 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 Jersey City Marathon flat?

Yes, close to it. The Jersey City Marathon runs between 4 and 68 feet above sea level with 383 feet of total climbing. The organizers call it one of the fastest and flattest courses in the United States. The only meaningful rise is Summit Avenue, roughly 60 feet of climb, and it arrives in the last third of the race.

How many loops is the Jersey City Marathon?

Two southern loops from a start on Washington Boulevard in Newport. Each loop runs down through downtown Jersey City and Bergen-Lafayette into Liberty State Park, so you see Burma Road and the Morris Pesin Drive circle twice. The half marathon finishes near Newport Parkway at the end of the first loop while the marathon field continues north and goes around again.

Put the 16-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.