Running Plan Review Advanced Marathoning 18-Week, 55 to 70 mi/wk
By Advanced Marathoning (4th ed.) — Pete Pfitzinger and Scott Douglas Requires purchase Visit plan website
Plan at a Glance
Pete Pfitzinger ran two Olympic marathons before turning to coaching. The system he built with Scott Douglas puts half the instruction on the calendar and half in the book. This is the middle tier, and for many runners it is where his method properly begins.
You'll run six days a week and peak near 68 miles. The engine of the plan is the midweek medium-long run. By the second block you'll cover 14 to 15 miles on a Wednesday, then back it up with a 19 to 21 mile long run on Sunday. Two long runs a week, four days apart, is the load that separates this tier from the one below it.
The 18 weeks divide into four named blocks: endurance, lactate threshold, race preparation, then a three-week taper. Threshold sessions are prescribed in minutes rather than miles, so a 35-minute tempo asks the same of you at any pace. Two dropback weeks are marked on the schedule. Marathon-pace work grows through four long runs, reaching 14 continuous miles at goal pace in week 13.
Come in running at least 45 miles a week with a recent long run near 15 miles. There are no cross-training days here to soften the week. Strength work is programmed in the book but never scheduled, so you'll place it yourself.
Below is the full Buena Vida review. Every plan is held to the same detailed, 31-point benchmark, with each measure traced back to peer-reviewed sports-science research and proven coaching best practices.
Workouts
Similar plans
Our Review
Sixty-plus miles a week is a real commitment, and this is the tier where Pfitzinger stops making concessions. You run six days. Nothing is optional. If you have held 45 miles a week through a previous build, this is the natural next step.
The midweek medium-long run is what you should look at before committing. By the second block you're covering 14 to 15 miles on a Wednesday, then a 19 to 21 mile long run four days later. Most plans give you one long run a week and fill the rest with easy miles. Here you get two, and the Wednesday one lands on legs that have not fully cleared Sunday. Runners who cut this plan down almost always cut that run first, and it is the one that makes the tier work. If you cannot protect it, the up-to-55 schedule will serve you better than a hollowed-out version of this one.
This suits a runner with 45 weekly miles already routine, a previous marathon finish, and six days a week to give. If you need rest or cross-training days built into the week, look at the up-to-55 tier instead. If you're chasing a time that demands 85 miles at peak, the next tier up runs the same shape at higher volume.
-
Structure
Does the plan build you up smartly?
Four blocks are printed on the schedule: endurance, threshold, race preparation, then taper. You always know which phase you're in and why. Two dropback weeks are marked in the column header, so the lighter weeks read as deliberate. The three-week taper holds a tune-up race and a marathon-pace rehearsal while volume falls by roughly a third.
-
Prevention
Does the plan protect you from injury?
Progression is measured, with the largest week-to-week step around 14% and no week where load runs away. Both dropback weeks pull you below the previous three-week average, giving your legs a defined window to absorb the work. Every hard session opens with a warm-up segment. The gap is strength, which chapter 4 of the book programs in detail but the calendar never shows.
-
Flexibility
What happens when you miss a day?
Threshold work is set in minutes rather than miles, so a 35-minute tempo costs you the same effort whether you run 6:00 or 8:00 pace. A decision table tells you when a missed stretch means resuming and when it means changing your goal. What you won't find is a cut-order for a broken week. You'll know that long runs outrank intervals, but not which three of six runs to keep.
-
Readiness
Will the plan deliver race-day fitness?
Marathon-pace work climbs through 8, 10, 12, then 14 continuous miles at goal pace across four long runs. Three tune-up races drop into the race-preparation and taper blocks, giving you real starts to pace against. The long run peaks at 21 to 22 miles in week 11. By the start line you'll have rehearsed goal effort four times over.
-
Variety
Are the workouts varied enough?
Nine run types fill the calendar, from recovery days through threshold work, VO2max intervals, and marathon-pace long runs. Hill sprints are new in this edition: six 10-second efforts on the end of an easy run, building power without costing you a hard day. Interval reps run from 600 meters to 1,000 meters. The variety sits in what each session is for rather than in rep length.
Plan Strengths
- Two long runs a week, four days apart, teach your legs to run tired without a hard session.
- Marathon pace grows to 14 continuous miles, so goal effort sits in your legs before race week.
- Both dropback weeks drop you below the prior three-week average, giving tendons a real window.
- You get three tune-up races, enough to fix your pacing habits before they cost you the marathon.
- Threshold runs are timed rather than measured, so the dose lands the same at any pace you hold.
Weaknesses & gaps
- Six running days with no cross-training option leaves you nowhere to put a bad week.
- The Wednesday medium-long run is the first thing runners cut, and the plan stops working without it.
- Chapter 4 of the book programs strength work, but you'll never see it on the calendar.
- You need 45 miles a week before week 1, and nothing in the plan checks that you have it.
- No workout is tagged as cut-first, so a collapsed week leaves you guessing which runs matter.
What this plan does not give you
The gap is what the book carries and the calendar does not. Strength work is programmed in chapter 4 but never scheduled, so plan two short sessions on your easier days, away from the evening before a hard run. Pace prescriptions assume the book is nearby. Threshold pace resolves through Appendix B's equivalent race times, but the fourth edition dropped the chart that converted a goal time into a 5K pace, so your interval targets need a recent race. There is also no rest or cross-training day anywhere in the week. If your body needs one, you'll have to take it from a recovery run and accept the lower weekly total.
What the science supports
Training in phases beats holding one load
The 18 weeks split into four blocks, each carrying a different job. Endurance work builds through the first six weeks. Lactate-threshold running, meaning steady efforts just under the pace where breathing gets ragged, anchors the middle five. Race preparation brings tune-up races and marathon-pace long runs, then three weeks of taper. Shifting emphasis across blocks like this outperforms a calendar that holds one gear throughout.
Bradbury et al. 2020; Tønnessen et al. 2014; Casado et al. 2022
Long runs are essential for the marathon
Long runs reach 19 to 21 miles repeatedly, peaking at 21 to 22 miles in week 11. What sets this tier apart is the second one: a 14 to 15 mile medium-long run every Wednesday. You accumulate long-run stress twice a week rather than once, which is the mechanism behind the tier's reputation. Shorter faster sessions do not substitute for it.
Toresdahl et al. 2021; Jones & Kirby 2025; Casado et al. 2019
Race-pace training pays off near your threshold
Marathon-pace blocks sit inside four long runs, in weeks 2, 5, 9, and 13, growing from 8 to 14 continuous miles at goal pace. For most marathoners at this level race pace sits just below the breathing-hard threshold, so the rehearsal transfers directly. Threshold sessions stay on their own days rather than collapsing into the race-pace runs.
Pierce et al. 1990; Hewson & Hopkins 1996; Jones et al. 2021
A taper makes you 2-6% faster on race day
The final three weeks cut volume from about 69 miles to 24 while keeping the edges sharp. A tune-up race sits two weeks out, VO2max repeats the week after, and a marathon-pace dress rehearsal lands in race week. Volume falls, intensity holds. That pairing is what returns a small but dependable gain on race day.
Tune-up races may sharpen pacing
Three tune-up races sit across the race-preparation and taper blocks, two at 8K to 15K and one shorter. They will not make you faster by themselves. What they give you is rehearsal at starting honestly in a crowd, which is the skill that decides how your first 10 miles unfold.
Train better with Buena Vida
Buena Vida Run Club members get access to a catalog of 250 training plans as part of their membership. Training with Buena Vida offers detailed daily workout notes, integrated nutrition, live voice coaching, weight loss plans, and easy calendar management for life's hiccups.
Try it FREE for 7 days!
Frequently asked questions
- Is Advanced Marathoning 18-Week, 55 to 70 mi/wk good for beginners?
- No. Advanced Marathoning 18-Week, 55 to 70 mi/wk is built for intermediate-level runners. A true beginner should start with a lower-mileage plan.
- How many days per week does Advanced Marathoning 18-Week, 55 to 70 mi/wk require?
- The plan runs on a schedule of multiple weekly runs. See the at-a-glance strip for the exact count.
- Does Advanced Marathoning 18-Week, 55 to 70 mi/wk include a taper?
- Yes, the plan includes a taper into race week.
- What is the rubric grade for Advanced Marathoning 18-Week, 55 to 70 mi/wk?
- Advanced Marathoning 18-Week, 55 to 70 mi/wk grades B on the Buena Vida rubric.