MCM 2:55 Marathon — Sep 16 to Oct 25, 2026

Corrected 40-day Marine Corps Marathon plan targeting 2:55:00 (~6:40.5/mi). Built from recent Tredict/Garmin performance: strong aerobic control, threshold speed reserve, and increasing long-run durability. Priorities: marathon-specific endurance, injury-aware load management, Saturday rest, Sunday long runs, exact title/description/step consistency, and Garmin-compatible structured workouts. Easy/recovery runs use distance only with no pace target. Quality steps use explicit pace targets. Time recoveries are encoded only between repetitions. Key long run is Oct 4. Race day uses controlled opening pace, goal marathon pace through 20 miles, then an open finish step to avoid GPS distance mismatch. Practice fueling on long runs; target roughly 60–75 g carbohydrate/hour initially and up to 75–90 g/hour if well tolerated. Monitor shin and knee symptoms; do not force pace if pain changes gait or progressively worsens.

Training phases:

Build

Intensive

Tapering

Plateau

Build In the build-up phase, volumes are increased and specialised units are added. The build-up phase takes the momentum of the foundation phase, builds on it and leads purposefully to the intensive phase or the seasonal plateau.

Intensive In the intensive phase of a training season, the main aim is to add endurance, speed and efficiency to what is already there. The volumes remain high. High-intensity sessions and other specific workouts are regularly added.

Tapering Race preparation is characterised by reduced volumes and tapering. Sometimes special training sessions are added to increase efficiency.

Plateau In the seasonal plateau, the important competitions are held, for which the other training phases were used for targeted training. The strenuous competitions are given weight through sufficient recovery, while the next competition is prepared for with training sessions that keep up the form.

Zone type:

Pace / Tempo

Pace / Tempo The intensities and efforts of the plan are calculated using the speeds of the workouts.

Performance level: Professional

Professional This plan is aimed at ambitious athletes and professionals who already have a high level of endurance and can tolerate higher volumes.

Applicability: Only the buyer

Only the buyer The plan may only be applied to the calendar of the training plan buyer. However, this can be done an unlimited number of times.

License: CC BY 4.0

Attribution The "Creative Commons BY" license allows third parties to distribute, remix, improve and build upon a work, even commercially, as long as the creator of the original is credited. Link to licence description

Paul

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San Diego

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This training plan works on the basis of measured speed. A speedometer, e.g. a sports watch or an accelerometer on a bicycle, is required when exercising. Tredict supports most modern sensors and training devices.

Learn more about Tredict with the glossary or read the blog.

HRmax: The maximum heart rate your heart can deliver under very heavy load.

FTPa: Functional Threshold Pace - The maximum speed you can maintain for about an hour.

FTP: Functional Threshold Power - The maximum wattage you can maintain for about an hour.

The relative intensity values of a training session are converted into your personal absolute intensity values when using the plan, based on the capacity values. 70% HRmax thus become 140bpm, if your maximum heart rate in the capacity values is set to 200bpm.
Tredict's intensity calculation is based on the training duration, so the distance of the training plan changes according to your personal FTPa.

Integrated services - Garmin Connect, Polar, Coros, Suunto, Wahoo, HealthFit, Dropbox, icTrainer, Withings, Fitness Syncer, RunGap

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