Big Beach Marathon training plan: course, start dates, and plan options
Gulf Shores, ALJanuary 31, 2027
The Big Beach Marathon starts and finishes beachside at The Hangout in Gulf Shores and spends its 26.2 miles on the paved trails through Gulf State Park, covering the same ground more than once. The whole course lives between roughly 2 and 48 feet above sea level. In 2026, 383 people finished it.
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That flatness is the thing to plan around, and not in the way most runners assume. A course with about 314 feet of total climbing gives your legs no variation at all. Same stride, same muscles, same angle, for however many hours you are out there, and the mile you break is usually the one where that finally catches up.
129 days to race day
Big Beach Marathon · January 31, 2027 · about 18 weeks out
Your plan starts with your race and works backward. Every week lands on a real calendar, with race day at the end.
When to start training for the Big Beach Marathon 2027
Race day is January 31, 2027, which is 129 days from today. Counting back from that date, here is when each length of build starts.
- 30-week buildWindow has passed
- 24-week buildWindow has passed
- 18-week buildStart September 27, 2026
- 16-week buildStart October 11, 2026
- 12-week buildshortest Stride acceptsStart November 8, 2026
You have about 18 weeks until race day, so there is still room for a full build. Stride reads the runway you actually have and maps every week from today to January 31, 2027.
Answer a few questions, choose your plan, then create your account and subscribe to start training in Stride.
Big Beach Marathon course facts
- Course
- Multiple Loops · Mostly Flat · Road/Pavement
- Elevation gain / loss
- 314 ft gain, 314 ft loss
- Highest / lowest point
- 48 ft / 2 ft
- Marathon finishers
- 383 in 2026 (small field)
- Boston qualifier
- Certified Boston qualifying course
- Finishers running a qualifying time
- 3.4% in 2026
- Typical race morning
- 57°F at the start, 84% humidity, overcast
- Race day high / low
- 62°F / 43°F on average
Let’s find the plan for you.
Your race, current mileage, longest run, marathon experience, and available days decide the best fit. Stride maps the plan you choose to race day at the Big Beach Marathon.
- Stride Run-Walk FinisherThree sessions a week with planned walk breaks, cover the full distance before race day.
- Stride First MarathonThe classic four-day first-marathon build: easy running and one weekly long run, no speedwork.
- Stride First Marathon PlusA first-marathon build with a little more volume and weekly race-pace miles.
- Stride 6-Day FinisherFinish your first marathon on frequency: six easy-leaning runs a week, no monster long runs.
- Stride 5-Day Pace BuilderFive days a week with race-pace runs before your long runs, built for a mid-pack time goal.
- Stride 6-Day RhythmSix days a week with three quality sessions, steady fatigue that teaches you to finish strong.
- Stride Time-Based FoundationFive time-based runs a week, mostly easy, the injury-averse way to a strong finish.
- Stride Time-Based BuilderSix time-based runs a week at a strict 80% easy / 20% hard split, chase a time goal without breaking.
- Stride 3-Day Cross-TrainThree runs plus two cross-training days over 24 weeks, marathon fitness on a busy schedule.
- Stride 3-Day QualityExactly three hard runs plus two mandatory cross-training sessions, every workout counts.
- Stride 6-Day CumulativeThe six-day cumulative-fatigue build with quality from week two, for PR chasers with a base.
- Stride Threshold 55The serious BQ/PR build to 55 miles a week: threshold work, medium-long runs, and 20-milers.
- Stride Threshold 70The high-mileage BQ/PR build to 70 miles a week for veterans with a deep base.
- Stride 2-Quality FlexTwo fixed quality sessions a week, everything else flexible easy running, fits any schedule.
Answer a few questions, choose your plan, then create your account and subscribe to start training in Stride.
Choose your Big Beach Marathon training window.
Compare 12, 16, 18, and 20 weeks counted back from race day. The 18-week option includes the complete four-day schedule.
The course: paved park trails, run more than once
The Big Beach Marathon runs on the fully paved trails of Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, Alabama, starting and finishing beachside at The Hangout. The organizers call it scenic, flat and fast, and the terrain data backs the flat part: the course never rises above about 48 feet, and total climbing is roughly 314 feet.
It is a multi-loop layout, so you see the same stretches of trail more than once. That is worth knowing before race day, because the second and third passes feel nothing like the first. Every turn gets familiar, every aid station gets familiar, and by the last pass there is no new scenery left to distract you from your legs.
Coastal wind is the variable nobody puts on a map. Race mornings have recorded a steady breeze around 10 miles per hour out of the south southeast, off the Gulf. On a looping course that means you take it from a different angle every few miles rather than fighting it down one long straight, which is easier on the head and harder to pace by feel.
How to train for the Big Beach Marathon
Train for Big Beach by building flat-terrain durability, because this course offers your legs no relief. With about 314 feet of climbing spread across 26.2 miles there is no descent to unload your calves and no climb to change your stride. Long runs on genuinely flat ground, held at goal pace, are the specific preparation.
Do at least two long runs of 18 miles or more on a bike path or a levee, somewhere with no rollers at all, and pay attention to what hurts at hour three. For most people it is the calves and the arches rather than the quads. Treat that as your strength target: calf raises, single leg work, and shoes you have already put a hundred miles into.
Rehearse the loop too. Run one long effort as three laps of the same six to eight mile circuit, so that passing the same tree for the third time is a familiar feeling instead of a new one on race day. It sounds trivial. It is the difference between mile 22 being a bad patch and mile 22 being the end of your race.
Last piece is the air. Race mornings have run near 84 percent humidity even at 57 degrees, and damp air at a mild temperature fools people into starting too hard. Get some long efforts in before sunrise in whatever humidity you can find and learn what pace stays sustainable when the air is thick.
Getting in
Entry runs through RunSignup and Big Beach does not sell out the way big city marathons do. Finisher counts have sat between roughly 280 and 420 over the past six years, so a late decision is usually still possible. The marathon goes off at 7:30 a.m. CST from The Hangout, and the race window runs to 2:30 p.m.
Where does the Big Beach Marathon get hard?
Roughly mile 20, on the final pass through trail you have already run twice, where about 314 feet of total climbing means nothing in the terrain ever changes to unload tired calves.
What is the weather like at the Big Beach Marathon?
Race morning at Big Beach has typically been around 57F with humidity near 84 percent, overcast, and a 10 mph breeze off the Gulf out of the south southeast. Late January in Gulf Shores averages a 62F high and a 43F low, so you finish in mild air rather than cold. Dress for the humidity rather than the thermometer, and put a few long runs into damp pre-dawn air so the first hour does not feel harder than it should.
Is the Big Beach Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
Big Beach is a USATF certified Boston qualifying course with no net drop, so nothing about the terrain triggers the BAA's downhill adjustment. The qualifying rate has still been modest: 3.4 percent of finishers ran a qualifying time in 2026, 5.7 percent in 2025 and 6.6 percent in 2024. Flat removes an obstacle, but it does not run the race for you.
Is the Big Beach Marathon a good first marathon?
Yes, this is a sensible first marathon. It is flat, at sea level, and the marathon runs from a 7:30 a.m. start until the race window closes at 2:30 p.m., which is about seven hours. The trade off is size. With 383 finishers in 2026 you will spend long stretches without a pack to sit behind, so practice holding your own pace before you get there.
Big Beach Marathon questions, answered.
Is the Big Beach Marathon course actually flat?
Yes. The Big Beach Marathon runs between roughly 2 and 48 feet above sea level on the paved trails of Gulf State Park, with about 314 feet of total climbing across 26.2 miles. There is no hill worth naming. The difficulty is the opposite problem: nothing changes, so your legs work the same way for the entire race.
What is the time limit for the Big Beach Marathon?
The Big Beach Marathon starts at 7:30 a.m. CST and the race window runs until 2:30 p.m. CST, which gives you about seven hours for 26.2 miles. That works out near a 16 minute per mile pace, comfortable for a steady run walk finish. Confirm the current cutoff with the organizers if you expect to need most of it.
Where does the Big Beach Marathon get hard?
Around mile 20, on the pass through trail you have already covered twice. Big Beach is a multi-loop course, so the late miles bring no new scenery to distract you and no change in grade to shift the load off tired calves. Runners who prepare for that repetition mentally handle the last hour far better.
Is the Big Beach Marathon worth traveling for?
It suits runners who want a quiet winter marathon in warm weather rather than a big city event. Around 400 people finish each year, the start and finish sit beachside at The Hangout in Gulf Shores, and late January on the Alabama coast averages a 62F high. Come for the calm conditions and the beach, not for crowds.
Where does the Big Beach Marathon get hard?
Roughly mile 20, on the final pass through trail you have already run twice, where about 314 feet of total climbing means nothing in the terrain ever changes to unload tired calves.
What is the weather like at the Big Beach Marathon?
Race morning at Big Beach has typically been around 57F with humidity near 84 percent, overcast, and a 10 mph breeze off the Gulf out of the south southeast. Late January in Gulf Shores averages a 62F high and a 43F low, so you finish in mild air rather than cold. Dress for the humidity rather than the thermometer, and put a few long runs into damp pre-dawn air so the first hour does not feel harder than it should.
Is the Big Beach Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
Big Beach is a USATF certified Boston qualifying course with no net drop, so nothing about the terrain triggers the BAA's downhill adjustment. The qualifying rate has still been modest: 3.4 percent of finishers ran a qualifying time in 2026, 5.7 percent in 2025 and 6.6 percent in 2024. Flat removes an obstacle, but it does not run the race for you.
Is the Big Beach Marathon a good first marathon?
Yes, this is a sensible first marathon. It is flat, at sea level, and the marathon runs from a 7:30 a.m. start until the race window closes at 2:30 p.m., which is about seven hours. The trade off is size. With 383 finishers in 2026 you will spend long stretches without a pack to sit behind, so practice holding your own pace before you get there.
When should I start training for the Big Beach Marathon 2027?
Race day is January 31, 2027. Counting back from that date, a 20-week build starts around September 13, 2026, a 16-week build around October 11, 2026, and a 12-week build around November 8, 2026. Already inside that window? Stride maps a plan from today to race day, whatever the runway.
How does Stride's Big Beach Marathon plan work?
Download the app, pick the Big Beach Marathon as your race, and answer a few questions about your recent running and your weekly schedule. Stride matches you to one of 14 marathon plans, maps every week from today to January 31, 2027, adjusts when life gets in the way, and puts you in a feed of runners training for the same race.
Choosing a training app?
A Big Beach Marathon buildup is months of your life. See how Stride compares before you commit it to an app.
Find your plan.
Your race, current mileage, recent longest run, goal, and run days determine which plans rank first. Choose one and subscribe, then open every workout in Stride.