16-Week Marshall University Marathon Training Plan

Huntington, WVNovember 1, 2026

Start around July 12, 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
July 12, 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 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.

Foundation

Weeks 1–4

Jul 13, 2026–Aug 9, 2026

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

Build

Weeks 5–10

Aug 10, 2026–Sep 20, 2026

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

Peak

Weeks 11–13

Sep 21, 2026–Oct 11, 2026

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

Taper

Weeks 14–16

Oct 12, 2026–Nov 1, 2026

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

Make the window specific to Marshall University 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 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

16-week Marshall University Marathon plan questions, answered.

When should I start a 16-week Marshall University Marathon plan?

The 2026 Marshall University Marathon is scheduled for November 1, 2026, so the 16-week window opens around July 12, 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 Marshall University 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 Marshall University 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. 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 16-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 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.