New York City Marathon Training Plan, Matched to You
New York, NYNovember 1, 2026
New York is the biggest marathon on earth, and it earns the title the loud way: five boroughs, five bridges, and millions of spectators between the cannon on Staten Island and the finish line in Central Park.
It is not a fast course, and it doesn’t pretend to be. New York is a course you run smart: the hills are bridges, the crowd is a drug, and the race famously doesn’t start until First Avenue tempts you into running it too early.
Stride matches you to one of 14 marathon plans built on the most proven training methodologies in the sport, maps every week from today to race morning, and drops you into a feed of runners training for this exact race. The five boroughs are loud; your buildup doesn’t have to be lonely.
104 days to race day
New York City Marathon · November 1, 2026 · about 14 weeks out
Most Stride plans run 12 to 20 weeks. Wherever you are in the window, Stride maps your plan from today to the start line, never from an idealized week one.
14 plans. One that fits how you’ll get to New York.
Stride’s marathon plans are built on the most proven training methodologies in the sport, from run-walk first finishes to high-mileage qualifying builds. Stride doesn’t hand you a template; it matches your experience, mileage, and schedule to the plan a coach would have picked, then maps every week from today to race day at the New York City 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.
Not sure which one is yours? That’s what Stride is for. Download the app and get matched and it picks for you.
The course: five boroughs, five bridges
You start at Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island and immediately climb the biggest hill of the day: the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, a mile up and a mile down, with the whole city laid out to your left. It's also the most over-run mile in marathoning: adrenaline plus a downhill back half makes almost everyone bank time they'll repay with interest in the Bronx.
Brooklyn is the heart of the race: roughly eleven miles, much of it up Fourth Avenue through a wall of sound. The crowds here are dense, personal, and relentless: write your name on your shirt and Brooklyn will scream it for two hours. Halfway comes on the Pulaski Bridge into Queens, and then the race changes character completely.
The Queensboro Bridge, around mile 15, is New York's honesty test: a long, grinding climb in echoing silence, no spectators allowed, after ten miles of noise. What waits on the other side is the most famous sound in the sport: the turn onto First Avenue, where the crowd hits you like a physical thing. The classic New York blunder is surging here, at mile 16, with the hardest ten miles still ahead.
The Willis Avenue Bridge delivers you to the Bronx around mile 20, quieter, hard, and honest, before Harlem welcomes you back into Manhattan. Then comes the long, deceptive grind up Fifth Avenue from roughly mile 22 to 24, a gradual climb that reads flat and feels like a wall. Central Park's rolling final miles finish the job: nothing about this course's ending is free, and the finish by Tavern on the Green is worth every step.
How to train for New York
Train bridges, which is to say: train long, shallow climbs and their descents. New York's hills aren't steep; they're long ramps that arrive when you're tired. Put rolling terrain in your long runs, including late, and practice cresting a climb and settling straight back to rhythm instead of surging.
Rehearse restraint. More New York races are lost on the Verrazzano and First Avenue than on any hill. Long runs with a controlled first half and a strong final third build the exact discipline this course examines. Stride's plans structure long runs so finishing strong is a habit, not a hope.
A November race means a mostly-autumn peak after a summer base, friendlier than a summer buildup, but the biggest weeks land in September and October, so plan life around them. Race morning involves an early start and long waits at Fort Wadsworth: practice your throwaway-layer, eat-early logistics at least once before race day.
Getting in: four doors
There are four main ways into New York: the famously oversubscribed drawing; time-qualifying entries for fast marathons or half marathons; the NYRR 9+1 program (run nine qualifying NYRR races and volunteer at one in a calendar year for guaranteed entry the following year); and charity entries. Locals overwhelmingly use 9+1; everyone else mostly rides the lottery.
However you got in, the buildup is the same: download Stride, get matched to the plan that fits your experience and your week, and watch the whole thing get mapped from today to the first Sunday in November.
New York City Marathon questions, answered.
How long do I need to train for the New York City Marathon?
Most Stride marathon plans run 12 to 20 weeks depending on your base and experience. Get matched in the app and Stride maps every week from today to race day, long runs, step-back weeks, and taper included.
How do I get into the NYC Marathon?
Four main paths: the entry drawing, time-qualifying standards, NYRR's 9+1 program (nine NYRR races plus one volunteer shift in a calendar year earns guaranteed entry the next year), and charity entries. The drawing is heavily oversubscribed, so many runners plan a year ahead with 9+1 or charity.
How hilly is the New York City Marathon?
Hillier than people expect, and the hills are bridges. The Verrazzano at mile 1 is the biggest climb, the Queensboro at mile 15 is the hardest, and the Fifth Avenue grind from mile 22 to 24 breaks more races than either. Train long, gradual climbs, especially late in long runs.
Is NYC a good course for a PR?
It's not built for one: bridges, crowds, and a rolling Central Park finish make it slower than Chicago or Berlin for the same fitness. Most runners target 2 to 5 minutes slower than their flat-course time and race it for the experience. Run it smart and it can still be a great day.
What's the biggest mistake first-timers make in New York?
Going out too fast, twice: on the Verrazzano downhill at mile 2, and on First Avenue at mile 16 when the crowd noise hits after the silent Queensboro. Train restraint in long runs, a controlled first half and a strong finish, and the last 10K becomes yours.
When is the New York City Marathon?
This edition runs on November 1, 2026, from Staten Island to Central Park. Whenever you start training, Stride maps your plan from today to that morning.
Your race is the center of everything.
Every week between now and your start line, planned. Download Stride and start training today.
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