20-Week Marathon Training Plan for ‘Comeback’ Runners

Are you an experienced runner who has taken some time off from the marathon, but are ready to come back to 26.2? Here’s a plan that might be perfect to get you back in form: How long is it? Up to 20 weeks (reduce if your base is strong) How many days per week do I run? 4-5 How many miles each week? Peak week is 43 miles What’s my longest long run? 20 miles Will there be speedwork? Yes What’s my race plan/goal? To run faster You’ll rest or cross-train on Mondays and Thursdays. Your Wednesday or Saturday run can be dropped every 3 to 4 weeks if you need more rest and recovery time.

Week	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
1	6 miles	3 miles	6 miles	3 miles	8 miles	Rest
2	6 miles	3 miles	7 miles	3 miles	9 miles	Rest
3	7 miles	3 miles	7 miles	3 miles	10 miles	Rest
4	7 miles	3 miles	6 miles	3 miles	12 miles	Rest
5	6 miles	4 miles	6 miles	3 miles	10 miles	Rest
6	7 miles	3 miles	6 miles	3 miles	12 miles	Rest
7	7 miles	3 miles	6 miles	3 miles	14 miles	Rest
8	7 miles	4 miles	7 miles	2 miles	12 miles	Rest
9	6 miles	4 miles	6 miles	4 miles	16 miles	Rest
10	7 miles	4 miles	6 miles	3 miles	18 miles	Rest
11	9 miles	3 miles	7 miles	3 miles	20 miles	Rest
12	7 miles	5 miles	9 miles	3 miles	15 miles	Rest
13	6 miles	5 miles	6 miles	2 miles	18 miles	Rest
14	6 miles	4 miles	6 miles	3 miles	20 miles	Rest
15	7 miles	6 miles	7 miles	4 miles	18 miles	Rest
16	9 miles	5 miles	8 miles	4 miles	15 miles	Rest
17	6 miles	5 miles	8 miles	3 miles	20 miles	Rest
18	7 miles	5 miles	6 miles	3 miles	16 miles	Rest
19	7 miles	4 miles	5 miles	3 miles	10 miles	Rest
20	3 miles	5 miles	3 miles	2 miles	Race Day!	Rest

Here are five adages to live by as you train:

Proceed like a beginner

Especially in the beginning, build to speed and distance like you are just starting. This will stave off injury and frustration.

Adjust goals often

Really pay attention to your effort. After building your base back, revise your goals to be faster or slower depending on how you feel. Keep adjusting as necessary.

Evolve

What worked before may not work now. A 22 miler might give you the confidence you need on race day. Or you might need an extra rest day. Know thyself.

Tune up

Use shorter races to give yourself a gauge of fitness throughout the cycle. These can be great indicators of what to expect for your goal race.

Recover smart

If you fear the slow process of another comeback, recover with a reverse taper. Take up to a week off with complete rest if needed depending on race effort. Ease back into walking or easy running for another week or two before adding on miles. Carissa Liebowitz has run the Boston Marathon as well as dozens of marathons and half marathons. You can follow her running adventures on Strava, Instagram and her blog.