Mon
Rest
Rest
4-Day Pittsburgh Marathon Training Plan
Pittsburgh, PAMay 2, 2027
Four runs per week for 18 weeks: two easy runs, one midweek aerobic run, and one long run. The schedule stays fixed; the guidance below shows how to choose terrain, rehearse conditions, and prepare for the Pittsburgh Marathon course.
The Pittsburgh Marathon crosses all three of the city's rivers, each on a different bridge, and then climbs out of the valley those rivers cut. That is the whole course in one sentence. There are 933 feet of gain and 939 feet of loss, and the gap between the lowest point on the route and the highest is 261 feet.
- Race day
- May 2, 2027
- 18-week window
- Around December 27, 2026
- Course
- Rolling Hills · Loop
- Peak week
- 40 miles
- Longest run
- 20 miles
Your complete Pittsburgh Marathon schedule
The 18-week window opens around December 27, 2026. Weeks one through 17 keep the normal Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday rhythm. Only race week moves so the marathon lands on its actual weekday. If the window has passed, do not skip ahead or cram missed mileage into the time left.
Open any week to see all seven days. Week 1 is open to start.
1Week 1Foundation · 15 mi
Tue
Easy
3 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
30 min easy cross-training or mobility
Thu
Easy
3 mi relaxed aerobic run
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
3 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
6 mi long run, conversational effort
2Week 2Foundation · 17 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
3 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
30 min easy cross-training or mobility
Thu
Easy
4 mi relaxed aerobic run
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
3 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
7 mi long run, conversational effort
3Week 3Recovery week · 15 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
3 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
Rest or 20 min gentle mobility
Thu
Easy
3 mi relaxed aerobic run
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
3 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
6 mi long run, conversational effort
4Week 4Build · 19 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
3 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
30–40 min easy cross-training
Thu
Easy
5 mi relaxed aerobic run
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
3 mi easy run + 4 relaxed strides
Sun
Long run
8 mi long run, conversational effort
5Week 5Build · 22 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
4 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
30–40 min easy cross-training
Thu
Easy
5 mi relaxed aerobic run
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
3 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
10 mi long run; practice fluids
6Week 6Recovery week · 18 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
3 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
Rest or 25 min gentle cross-training
Thu
Easy
4 mi relaxed aerobic run
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
3 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
8 mi long run, conversational effort
7Week 7Build · 25 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
4 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
30–40 min easy cross-training
Thu
Quality
6 mi steady run; final 1 mi at planned marathon effort
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
3 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
12 mi long run; practice fuel and fluids
8Week 8Recovery week · 23 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
4 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
30 min easy cross-training or mobility
Thu
Easy
5 mi relaxed aerobic run
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
4 mi easy run + 4 relaxed strides
Sun
Long run
10 mi long run, conversational effort
9Week 9Build · 29 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
4 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
30–40 min easy cross-training
Thu
Quality
7 mi steady run; middle 2 mi at planned marathon effort
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
4 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
14 mi long run; use race-day fuel timing
10Week 10Recovery week · 24 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
4 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
Rest or 25 min gentle cross-training
Thu
Easy
5 mi relaxed aerobic run
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
4 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
11 mi long run, conversational effort
11Week 11Build · 32 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
5 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
30–40 min easy cross-training
Thu
Quality
7 mi steady run; final 2 mi at planned marathon effort
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
4 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
16 mi long run; rehearse fuel, fluids, and kit
12Week 12Recovery week · 26 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
4 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
Rest or 25 min gentle cross-training
Thu
Easy
6 mi relaxed aerobic run
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
4 mi easy run + 4 relaxed strides
Sun
Long run
12 mi long run, conversational effort
13Week 13Peak week · 36 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
5 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
30 min easy cross-training or mobility
Thu
Quality
8 mi steady run; middle 3 mi at planned marathon effort
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
5 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
18 mi long run; full race-day fueling rehearsal
14Week 14Recovery week · 29 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
5 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
Rest or 25 min gentle cross-training
Thu
Easy
6 mi relaxed aerobic run
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
4 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
14 mi long run, conversational effort
15Week 15Peak week · 40 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
6 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
30 min easy cross-training or mobility
Thu
Quality
9 mi steady run; middle 4 mi at planned marathon effort
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
5 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
20 mi long run; complete race-day rehearsal
16Week 16Taper · 26 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
4 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
25 min easy cross-training or mobility
Thu
Quality
6 mi relaxed run; 2 mi at planned marathon effort
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
4 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
12 mi long run, controlled effort
17Week 17Taper · 18 mi
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
3 mi easy run
Wed
Cross-training
Rest or 20 min gentle mobility
Thu
Easy
4 mi relaxed run + 4 short strides
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
3 mi easy run
Sun
Long run
8 mi long run, conversational effort
18Week 18Taper · 8 mi + race
Mon
Rest
Rest
Tue
Easy
3 mi easy run
Wed
Rest
Rest or 15 min gentle mobility
Thu
Easy
3 mi easy run + 4 short strides
Fri
Rest
Rest
Sat
Easy
2 mi shakeout, or rest
Sun
Race
Marathon — 26.2 mi
This free plan is complete, fixed, and ready to use.
It begins at 15 miles per week, peaks at 40, and asks you to manage schedule changes and missed training yourself.
A Stride plan ranks from your running, then dates to race day.
Current mileage, recent longest run, marathon experience, goal, and available days decide which plans rank first.
How to use this plan for Pittsburgh Marathon
The mileage builds your engine. Your long-run route, pacing, fueling, and clothing rehearsals make that fitness specific to this race.
How to train for Pittsburgh
Training for the Pittsburgh Marathon means hill work in both directions. The course climbs 933 feet and hands every foot of it back, 939 feet of descent, and the climbs come out of the river valleys into neighborhoods sitting roughly 260 feet higher. Legs trained only on flat roads will survive the ups and then come apart on the downs.
Put your hill repeats late in a long run rather than at the start of a fresh easy day. A 16 miler where the hilly section falls between miles 11 and 15 teaches something a rested hill workout cannot. Add downhill running on purpose, two or three miles of controlled descent a week building over eight weeks, because eccentric quad damage is what turns a good Pittsburgh race into a long walk. And run the climbs by effort. Giving up 30 seconds on a hill you ran patiently is a much cheaper trade than losing four minutes at mile 22.
Keep the plan honest. This free schedule contains no speedwork. Apply the course guidance through route choice and race rehearsal without turning easy days into extra workouts. If your goal calls for marathon-pace work, compare it with First Marathon Plus.
Match the terrain
Run part of your Pittsburgh Marathon long-run mileage on terrain that rises and falls. Hold effort steady on climbs, let pace change, and practice cresting without surging.
Rehearse race morning
Race morning in Pittsburgh in early May has averaged about 53 degrees at the start with 75 percent humidity, clear skies and a light west-southwest wind near 4 mph, warming toward a daily high around 66. You start cool and finish in sun. Do a few long runs that begin at dawn and run well into the warm part of the morning, so the swing is familiar rather than a surprise at mile 20.
Prepare for the hard part
The race turns hard where the course leaves the river valleys and climbs toward the East End, taking most of its 933 feet of gain to reach ground roughly 260 feet above the bridges you crossed earlier.
Check the starting line before you commit.
Beginner-friendly does not mean couch-to-marathon. Week one asks for four runs, 15 total miles, and a six-mile long run.
- Fifteen miles in week one is close to the volume you already handle.
- You can protect four run days most weeks, including a weekend long run.
- Your priority is a steady first-marathon build without speedwork.
- You can start around December 27, 2026 without forcing the early weeks.
Pittsburgh Marathon course facts
- Course
- Loop · Rolling Hills · Road/Pavement
- Elevation gain / loss
- 933 ft gain, 939 ft loss
- Highest / lowest point
- 985 ft / 724 ft
- Marathon finishers
- 5,024 in 2026 (large field)
- Boston qualifier
- Certified Boston qualifying course
- Finishers running a qualifying time
- 4.5% in 2026
- Typical race morning
- 53°F at the start, 75% humidity, clear
- Race day high / low
- 66°F / 44°F on average
Pittsburgh Marathon questions, answered.
When should I start this 18-week Pittsburgh Marathon plan?
The 2027 Pittsburgh Marathon is scheduled for May 2, 2027, so the 18-week window opens around December 27, 2026. Weeks one through 17 keep the normal weekly rhythm and Sunday long run; only the final race week shifts to the event's actual weekday. If that date has already passed, do not compress 18 weeks of mileage into a shorter window.
How should I adapt the four-day plan for the Pittsburgh Marathon course?
Run part of your Pittsburgh Marathon long-run mileage on terrain that rises and falls. Hold effort steady on climbs, let pace change, and practice cresting without surging. Training for the Pittsburgh Marathon means hill work in both directions. The course climbs 933 feet and hands every foot of it back, 939 feet of descent, and the climbs come out of the river valleys into neighborhoods sitting roughly 260 feet higher. Legs trained only on flat roads will survive the ups and then come apart on the downs.
Is four days a week enough to train for the Pittsburgh Marathon?
Four run days can be enough when 15 miles in week one is not a sudden jump and you can protect the long run most weeks. This schedule builds to a 40-mile peak and a 20-mile long run. A runner chasing an aggressive time or already supporting more volume may fit a higher-mileage plan better.
Is the Pittsburgh Marathon hilly?
Yes, genuinely. The Pittsburgh Marathon climbs 933 feet and descends 939 across 26.2 miles, and the course ranges from 724 to 985 feet of elevation. The climbing comes where the route leaves the river valleys for the East End neighborhoods, which sit roughly 260 feet above the bridges. This is a hard course by any standard.
How many bridges does the Pittsburgh Marathon cross?
The course crosses each of Pittsburgh's three rivers at least once, on three different bridges, including the 16th Street Bridge near the Strip District, also called the David McCullough Bridge. The bridge decks themselves are flat. What comes after them is not, which is why the crossings are worth marking on your race plan.
The same four-day schedule, shaped around the course ahead.
Choose your race for its current date, course profile, typical race-morning conditions, and specific long-run guidance.