Marathon Plan Beginner - L1

I completed my first marathon (Rimrock) all thanks to your program! It's always been a goal of mine to run a marathon, but I had doubts having only completed a couple half marathons. I came across your free beginner program while researching online and it seemed less intimidating than others. Being a mom of 4 young children, your program was easy to follow and manageable with my busy schedule. Taking it week by week, I followed the workout plan almost to the tee, except substituting in some hill workouts because my race had 7 miles incline at the beginning. I even got sick on my longest run week and had to miss it, but was able to rest, recover, and make it to the finish line uninjured and eager to run another marathon! If this is a goal of yours, I truly believe this program will help you reach it!! What an exhilarating experience! Happy running!

Great plan. I’ve just finished my first marathon (Dublin), no walking all the time running. After two days I am in a good condition, no legs soreness. Plan is quite difficult especially for 55 years old working women but worth doing. Next time I want to improve my time.

Ran my first half marathon and did it faster than I thought. Thanks Ben! Going to use the full marathon plan next

4 months ago I had never gone out for a run, not even 1km. I got inspired to run a marathon, but I thought it impossible. I started looking into it and I stumbled across Ben Parkes' youtube channel. I saw that there was a way to go from zero to running a marathon in just 4 months. It seemed crazy, but I wanted to give it a shot. I got the free beginner plan and followed it almost perfectly. 4 months later, I ran the Buenos Aires Marathon. I finished in just under 5 hours, which was around what I expected based on my training paces. It still amazes me that I actually did it, but I know it was possible because of the great training plan I followed. Thank you so much, Ben!

P.S. I'll keep running!

I highly recommend this beginner plan. As someone who used to find 10km difficult, it was so great to feel so well prepared for 42.2km by the end.

I had initially felt overwhelmed by all the marathon training information out there. Finding this plan and strength routine gave me structure, consistency, and one clear direction.

A friend recommended your training plans and I chose your beginners program with a goal of 4:30. Your plan was well structured and easy to follow. I ran the Two Rivers Marathon in Zaltbommel, NL yesterday with a time of 4h15, Smashed it!!! Thanks for the Excellent plan, I will use the Improver Plan for my next Marathon.

I really like as you speak about training. I bought right after L2. It Is training for my first marathon next year in Prague. AND i Will be wearing your cap. Best on the market you say Ben. Looking forward when it arrives

This beginners plan helped get me to the start (and end!) of my first marathon. Despite it being a lot hotter on the day than any of my training runs, I was chuffed to be able to run it all and finish in 4 hrs 17 mins. I came into the training block having a decent level of fitness and knowing what my 'easy' and 'interval' paces were, however the plan gives you estimated pace times based on the time you are aiming to finish. It was easy to follow and manageable as I wanted to run 3-4 times per week so I could fit in an extra strength session to keep the niggles at bay!

I just completed my first ever, full marathon this weekend (DEC 2024). I followed your beginning marathon plan completely and consistently to prepare for this race. The weekly words of encouragement and pacing were excellent. It was extremely easy to follow and I never felt overloaded. It was the perfect amount of runs, rest days, strength training, etc. Not only did I complete the race, I exceeded the time I thought I would finish by! Looking forward to trying the next level of training plan :) Thanks again!

I decided to used this plan for my first marathon because it matched my schedules and times. I was aiming for a 5.30 marathon but I finished in 4.45. I couldn't believe it! This is the perfect plan for someone who's a first marathoner like me. Thank you Ben!

I purchased the plan based on having a reasonable amount of fitness. I followed the plan to letter missing only 1 session. I set a goal of running my first marathon in 4 hours. I completed Manchester 2024 in 4.05. This plan was key in that achievement. Many Thanks Ben and good look for your future races.

Just completed my second half marathon, and have 18 weeks to my first marathon attempt. I have watched BP's videos on YT for a few months and thought I would give the beginner marathon plan and strength routines a go. Very glad I did!

I made the mistake with the last half marathon in not having a target time in mind - I was 1 minute from the start gun and didnt have a clue what pace to run as I had neglected to do any real race-pace activity. (Downside to 80/20 and heart rate based training methinks!)

Very impressed with the structure of the runs and equally importantly the recovery time in this programme. (I'm 51 with knackered knees and degenerative disc disorder so plenty of recovery time is needed!)

I may tweak the paces a wee bit or go off heart rate for some easy runs but all-in-all great stuff and definitely better than winging it!

The strength workouts look great - how many of us have fallen into the YT trap of 200+ exercises for runners and trying to do them all? Great quick 20 minute workouts.

All-in-all Ben, many thanks from an old, knackered but very enthusiastic runner.

Thank you so much for making this free plan! I’ve run the London marathon twice and for my third time I've decided to attempt to get a PB of 5:30, so this plan should help me drastically. The plan looks very easy to follow as everything is very in a simple format which is very helpful to someone who finds reading hard! Thank you for helping me try and achieve my goal!

The plan looks very reasonable to me . I will use it to prepare gor London 24 or any other if i font get a place . Its my dream to run s marathon sfter suffering 4?strokes 3 years s go . I wad told i will be a lifelong nursing cade snd 12 later on the day ofmy strokes I ran my first half marathon. Now comes the bigone .I aim for 5:30h ( so quite slow but aiming for rel low heart rate( Maffetone method)) I sm really proud what I jave achieved and hope the plan gets me thete . Final wuestion: the Plan doesnt mention stretching? When should i stretch. After the runs?

Thanks for the free download plan ....I retired a couple of years ago aged 59 and have taken up running again after around a 25yr absence.
The plan seems great for my needs, in the past 6 months i have done a couple of half marathons and wanted to step up to a full marathon but didn't really know where to start. i have entered the ballot for 2024 London, but will find another marathon if i am unsuccessful, (i have done London in 1994 & 1996, but it didnt go well and i didnt really follow any training plan). This time i want to follow a plan to give myself the best chance of completing in my target time of 4 1/2 hrs.

Haven't started on the plan yet, but it already looks so promising. Will came back with update on the efficiency of the plan, but now, I can definitely say this plan super easy and convenient to read and navigate.
Thanks a lot Ben!

Signed up to Manchester marathon in November and after being recommended Ben’s plan, I started training in December. Really easy to follow and complete each week. I’m a mum of two and it fit very well into our routine. I aimed for 5 hours and ended up completing the marathon in 4 hours 50. Would definitely use again! Thank you!

I’m getting ready for my first official marathon October 2023 in Prince Edward County. It’s a Boston qualifier so the real deal. I’ve started running longer distances in retirement despite arthritis. I did a marathon last summer on my birthday with the help of my husband and neighbours. So then I knew I could do the distance. I’ve found Ben’s YouTube channel to be very inspirational on my journey, from Vaporfly to gels to running technique. I’m incorporating the beginner plan into my regimen now. “Getting it done”

Thanks,
Tom

Happy with the training plan. Helped me set new 5k PR. Also helped me run longer and injury free.

So pleased I chose this training plan for my first marathon. Easy to understand and swap about , but gets the job done. I missed about 4 shorter runs in total due to life getting in the way !! Finished in 4:36:22 at 50 years old . Will definitely be using Bens plans for all future events ,

I completed my first marathon (Rimrock) all thanks to your program! It's always been a goal of mine to run a marathon, but I had doubts having only completed a couple half marathons. I came across your free beginner program while researching online and it seemed less intimidating than others. Being a mom of 4 young children, your program was easy to follow and manageable with my busy schedule. Taking it week by week, I followed the workout plan almost to the tee, except substituting in some hill workouts because my race had 7 miles incline at the beginning. I even got sick on my longest run week and had to miss it, but was able to rest, recover, and make it to the finish line uninjured and eager to run another marathon! If this is a goal of yours, I truly believe this program will help you reach it!! What an exhilarating experience! Happy running!

Great plan. I’ve just finished my first marathon (Dublin), no walking all the time running. After two days I am in a good condition, no legs soreness. Plan is quite difficult especially for 55 years old working women but worth doing. Next time I want to improve my time.

Ran my first half marathon and did it faster than I thought. Thanks Ben! Going to use the full marathon plan next

4 months ago I had never gone out for a run, not even 1km. I got inspired to run a marathon, but I thought it impossible. I started looking into it and I stumbled across Ben Parkes' youtube channel. I saw that there was a way to go from zero to running a marathon in just 4 months. It seemed crazy, but I wanted to give it a shot. I got the free beginner plan and followed it almost perfectly. 4 months later, I ran the Buenos Aires Marathon. I finished in just under 5 hours, which was around what I expected based on my training paces. It still amazes me that I actually did it, but I know it was possible because of the great training plan I followed. Thank you so much, Ben!

P.S. I'll keep running!

I highly recommend this beginner plan. As someone who used to find 10km difficult, it was so great to feel so well prepared for 42.2km by the end.

I had initially felt overwhelmed by all the marathon training information out there. Finding this plan and strength routine gave me structure, consistency, and one clear direction.

A friend recommended your training plans and I chose your beginners program with a goal of 4:30. Your plan was well structured and easy to follow. I ran the Two Rivers Marathon in Zaltbommel, NL yesterday with a time of 4h15, Smashed it!!! Thanks for the Excellent plan, I will use the Improver Plan for my next Marathon.

I really like as you speak about training. I bought right after L2. It Is training for my first marathon next year in Prague. AND i Will be wearing your cap. Best on the market you say Ben. Looking forward when it arrives

This beginners plan helped get me to the start (and end!) of my first marathon. Despite it being a lot hotter on the day than any of my training runs, I was chuffed to be able to run it all and finish in 4 hrs 17 mins. I came into the training block having a decent level of fitness and knowing what my 'easy' and 'interval' paces were, however the plan gives you estimated pace times based on the time you are aiming to finish. It was easy to follow and manageable as I wanted to run 3-4 times per week so I could fit in an extra strength session to keep the niggles at bay!

I just completed my first ever, full marathon this weekend (DEC 2024). I followed your beginning marathon plan completely and consistently to prepare for this race. The weekly words of encouragement and pacing were excellent. It was extremely easy to follow and I never felt overloaded. It was the perfect amount of runs, rest days, strength training, etc. Not only did I complete the race, I exceeded the time I thought I would finish by! Looking forward to trying the next level of training plan :) Thanks again!

I decided to used this plan for my first marathon because it matched my schedules and times. I was aiming for a 5.30 marathon but I finished in 4.45. I couldn't believe it! This is the perfect plan for someone who's a first marathoner like me. Thank you Ben!

I purchased the plan based on having a reasonable amount of fitness. I followed the plan to letter missing only 1 session. I set a goal of running my first marathon in 4 hours. I completed Manchester 2024 in 4.05. This plan was key in that achievement. Many Thanks Ben and good look for your future races.

Just completed my second half marathon, and have 18 weeks to my first marathon attempt. I have watched BP's videos on YT for a few months and thought I would give the beginner marathon plan and strength routines a go. Very glad I did!

I made the mistake with the last half marathon in not having a target time in mind - I was 1 minute from the start gun and didnt have a clue what pace to run as I had neglected to do any real race-pace activity. (Downside to 80/20 and heart rate based training methinks!)

Very impressed with the structure of the runs and equally importantly the recovery time in this programme. (I'm 51 with knackered knees and degenerative disc disorder so plenty of recovery time is needed!)

I may tweak the paces a wee bit or go off heart rate for some easy runs but all-in-all great stuff and definitely better than winging it!

The strength workouts look great - how many of us have fallen into the YT trap of 200+ exercises for runners and trying to do them all? Great quick 20 minute workouts.

All-in-all Ben, many thanks from an old, knackered but very enthusiastic runner.

Thank you so much for making this free plan! I’ve run the London marathon twice and for my third time I've decided to attempt to get a PB of 5:30, so this plan should help me drastically. The plan looks very easy to follow as everything is very in a simple format which is very helpful to someone who finds reading hard! Thank you for helping me try and achieve my goal!

The plan looks very reasonable to me . I will use it to prepare gor London 24 or any other if i font get a place . Its my dream to run s marathon sfter suffering 4?strokes 3 years s go . I wad told i will be a lifelong nursing cade snd 12 later on the day ofmy strokes I ran my first half marathon. Now comes the bigone .I aim for 5:30h ( so quite slow but aiming for rel low heart rate( Maffetone method)) I sm really proud what I jave achieved and hope the plan gets me thete . Final wuestion: the Plan doesnt mention stretching? When should i stretch. After the runs?

Thanks for the free download plan ....I retired a couple of years ago aged 59 and have taken up running again after around a 25yr absence.
The plan seems great for my needs, in the past 6 months i have done a couple of half marathons and wanted to step up to a full marathon but didn't really know where to start. i have entered the ballot for 2024 London, but will find another marathon if i am unsuccessful, (i have done London in 1994 & 1996, but it didnt go well and i didnt really follow any training plan). This time i want to follow a plan to give myself the best chance of completing in my target time of 4 1/2 hrs.

Haven't started on the plan yet, but it already looks so promising. Will came back with update on the efficiency of the plan, but now, I can definitely say this plan super easy and convenient to read and navigate.
Thanks a lot Ben!

Signed up to Manchester marathon in November and after being recommended Ben’s plan, I started training in December. Really easy to follow and complete each week. I’m a mum of two and it fit very well into our routine. I aimed for 5 hours and ended up completing the marathon in 4 hours 50. Would definitely use again! Thank you!

I’m getting ready for my first official marathon October 2023 in Prince Edward County. It’s a Boston qualifier so the real deal. I’ve started running longer distances in retirement despite arthritis. I did a marathon last summer on my birthday with the help of my husband and neighbours. So then I knew I could do the distance. I’ve found Ben’s YouTube channel to be very inspirational on my journey, from Vaporfly to gels to running technique. I’m incorporating the beginner plan into my regimen now. “Getting it done”

Thanks,
Tom

Happy with the training plan. Helped me set new 5k PR. Also helped me run longer and injury free.

So pleased I chose this training plan for my first marathon. Easy to understand and swap about , but gets the job done. I missed about 4 shorter runs in total due to life getting in the way !! Finished in 4:36:22 at 50 years old . Will definitely be using Bens plans for all future events ,