16-Week San Francisco Marathon Training Plan

San Francisco, CAJuly 25, 2027

Start around April 4, 2027. The calendar below gives each phase a real date, then the course guidance shows where to make the build specific to San Francisco Marathon.

The San Francisco Marathon goes off at 5:15 a.m. from the Embarcadero at Mission, and by the time most marathons are starting their first wave you're already out on the Golden Gate Bridge. The course climbs about 1,299 feet and gives all of it back, in short pieces, with no single long hill anywhere.

Race day
July 25, 2027
Start window
April 4, 2027
Runway
16 weeks
Course
Hilly · Loop
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 San Francisco 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

Apr 5, 2027–May 2, 2027

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

Build

Weeks 5–10

May 3, 2027–Jun 13, 2027

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

Peak

Weeks 11–13

Jun 14, 2027–Jul 4, 2027

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

Taper

Weeks 14–16

Jul 5, 2027–Jul 25, 2027

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

Make the window specific to San Francisco 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 San Francisco Marathon

Train downhill running, not just climbing. San Francisco's 1,299 feet of gain comes back as 1,299 feet of descent on a loop, chopped into short repeated pieces, and it's the descending on tired legs that ends people's races here rather than the climbs themselves.

Build eccentric durability on purpose. Once a week from about 10 weeks out, finish a long run with three to five miles of moderate downhill at goal effort, using a quick, short stride instead of braking with your quads. Expect soreness for the first few sessions. That soreness is the adaptation you came for, and it's the one flat road training never gives you.

Put the climbing inside your long runs rather than doing hill repeats as a separate workout. This course never hands you one big hill to attack; it hands you a series of short ones spread over 26.2 miles, and the skill is holding effort steady while your pace swings 45 seconds either side of your average without you reacting to it.

Then there's the alarm clock. A 5:15 a.m. start means breakfast around 3:00 a.m. and a first hour run in the dark, so do at least three long runs starting before dawn with your actual race morning food. It sounds fussy. It's the difference between a settled stomach and a wrecked mile 6.

San Francisco Marathon course facts

Course
Loop · Hilly · Road/Pavement
Elevation gain / loss
1,299 ft gain, 1,299 ft loss
Highest / lowest point
292 ft / 8 ft
Marathon finishers
7,166 in 2026 (large field)
Boston qualifier
Certified Boston qualifying course
Finishers running a qualifying time
2.2% in 2026
Typical race morning
57°F at the start, 86% humidity, overcast
Race day high / low
66°F / 55°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 July 25, 2027.

Build My Plan

16-week San Francisco Marathon plan questions, answered.

When should I start a 16-week San Francisco Marathon plan?

The 2027 San Francisco Marathon is scheduled for July 25, 2027, so the 16-week window opens around April 4, 2027. 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 San Francisco 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 San Francisco 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 downhill running, not just climbing. San Francisco's 1,299 feet of gain comes back as 1,299 feet of descent on a loop, chopped into short repeated pieces, and it's the descending on tired legs that ends people's races here rather than the climbs themselves.

What if the 16-week San Francisco 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.

How hilly is The San Francisco Marathon?

It climbs about 1,299 feet and descends the same, with a high point around 292 feet, and none of it comes as one long hill. The climbing arrives in short repeated pieces across the city, which is harder to pace than a single named climb and harder on your quads than the total suggests.

Is The San Francisco Marathon a good Boston qualifier?

No. Only 2.2% of finishers ran qualifying times in 2026, 2.9% in 2025 and 3.7% in 2024. The course is USATF certified and Boston eligible, so a qualifier run here counts. The constant elevation change, the six hour limit and the 5:15 a.m. start simply make it unlikely.

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.