Sacramento, CA · December
CIM Training Plan
A free marathon plan for the California International Marathon, built around the course and your current fitness. Answer four questions and you will see every week of it. No account, no email, no card.
- Distances
- Marathon
- Course
- Rolling
- Usually held
- Each December
The CIM course
Folsom to the state capitol in Sacramento, net downhill and famous as a Boston qualifier. The downhill is not smooth: the first half is a series of rolling drops that beat up your legs if you take them too fast.
Weather on race day
Early December in Sacramento is cold at the start and usually ideal by the finish. Fog is common.
What to train for
Downhill-specific work. The net drop only helps if your quads survive the rollers in the first half, so train descents and start conservatively.
Registration and official details: CIM official site
CIM training questions
How long should I train for the CIM?
Most runners give a marathon sixteen to twenty weeks of focused training on top of an existing base. The plan above counts back from your actual race date, so if you have less time than that it builds the best plan the remaining weeks allow rather than pretending you have longer.
Is the CIM course hilly?
Rolling. Folsom to the state capitol in Sacramento, net downhill and famous as a Boston qualifier. The downhill is not smooth: the first half is a series of rolling drops that beat up your legs if you take them too fast.
What is the weather usually like at the CIM?
Early December in Sacramento is cold at the start and usually ideal by the finish. Fog is common.
Do I need an account to get a CIM training plan?
No. The plan above builds in your browser with no account, no email, and no card. Make a free account only if you want to keep it, log your runs against it, and have the coach keep adapting it as your training goes.
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