Mon
Rest
Rest
4-Day Top of Utah Marathon Training Plan
Logan, UTSeptember 18, 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 Top of Utah Marathon course.
Every mile of the Top of Utah Marathon is run above 4,400 feet. The course sits in a narrow band between roughly 4,411 and 4,535 feet, and it is described as the flattest marathon course in Utah, with grade at or near zero percent. Total climbing is about 345 feet, matched by the same amount of descent. Altitude is the course here, not the terrain.
- Race day
- September 18, 2027
- 18-week window
- Around May 15, 2027
- Course
- Mostly Flat · Mostly Loop
- Peak week
- 40 miles
- Longest run
- 20 miles
Your complete Top of Utah Marathon schedule
The 18-week window opens around May 15, 2027. 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
Sun
Rest
Rest
Mon
Easy
3 mi easy run
Tue
Rest
Rest or 15 min gentle mobility
Wed
Easy
3 mi easy run + 4 short strides
Thu
Rest
Rest
Fri
Easy
2 mi shakeout, or rest
Sat
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 Top of Utah 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 Top of Utah
Training for the Top of Utah Marathon has two parts: even pacing on flat ground, and a realistic altitude adjustment if you live low. Set a goal pace slower than your sea-level equivalent and hold it from mile one. A course with almost no gradient gives you nothing to hide behind if you go out too fast.
For the flat-course problem, run your long runs on the most unvarying surface you can find and stay in one gear, because unchanging terrain fatigues the same tissue over and over and that durability has to be built deliberately. For altitude, arrive either the day before or a full week ahead rather than somewhere in the middle, and run at least one easy session at elevation so race morning is not the first time you feel it. In a field of 149, also rehearse holding goal pace with nobody around you.
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
Do several Top of Utah Marathon long runs on uninterrupted flat ground. With few terrain changes to reset your stride, steady pacing and late-run form matter more than hill speed.
Rehearse race morning
September mornings in Logan start cold and clear, averaging around 48 degrees at the start with almost no wind, then climbing toward a high near 76. That is a swing of nearly 30 degrees over the day, so the last hour can be genuinely warm and very dry. Practice drinking on a schedule in dry air, where you sweat heavily without ever feeling wet.
Prepare for the hard part
Miles 18 to 26 are where the altitude bill comes due, because a flat course at 4,400 feet lets you run too fast early and gives you no change in terrain to warn you.
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 May 15, 2027 without forcing the early weeks.
Top of Utah Marathon course facts
- Course
- Mostly Loop · Mostly Flat · Road/Pavement
- Elevation gain / loss
- 345 ft gain, 345 ft loss
- Highest / lowest point
- 4,535 ft / 4,411 ft
- Marathon finishers
- 149 in 2025 (very small field)
- Boston qualifier
- Certified Boston qualifying course
- Finishers running a qualifying time
- 7.4% in 2025
- Typical race morning
- 48°F at the start, 64% humidity, clear
- Race day high / low
- 76°F / 42°F on average
Top of Utah Marathon questions, answered.
When should I start this 18-week Top of Utah Marathon plan?
The 2027 Top of Utah Marathon is scheduled for September 18, 2027, so the 18-week window opens around May 15, 2027. 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 Top of Utah Marathon course?
Do several Top of Utah Marathon long runs on uninterrupted flat ground. With few terrain changes to reset your stride, steady pacing and late-run form matter more than hill speed. Training for the Top of Utah Marathon has two parts: even pacing on flat ground, and a realistic altitude adjustment if you live low. Set a goal pace slower than your sea-level equivalent and hold it from mile one. A course with almost no gradient gives you nothing to hide behind if you go out too fast.
Is four days a week enough to train for the Top of Utah 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 Top of Utah Marathon flat?
Yes. The race describes its course as the flattest marathon in Utah, with grade at or near zero percent, and the elevation stays between roughly 4,411 and 4,535 feet with about 345 feet of total climbing. The difficulty comes from running at altitude rather than from any hill on the course.
How much does altitude affect the Top of Utah Marathon?
Enough to change your goal. The entire course sits above 4,400 feet, so a sea-level runner should expect the same pace to feel harder and should set a slower target accordingly. Arrive either the day before or a full week early, and run an easy session at elevation before race day.
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.
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