Your plan in four answers
Set for May 16, 2027, about 29 weeks out.
- Distances
- 5K, Half marathon, Marathon
- Terrain
- Hilly
- Field
- More than 5,000 runners in the first edition (2026)
- Taper starts
- April 28, 2027
Course
The Belo Horizonte Marathon course
The second edition of the city's official marathon starts and finishes at Praça da Estação on Avenida dos Andradas at 5:00, with a new half marathon and a 5 km night run joining the programme for Belo Horizonte's 130th anniversary. The first edition in 2026 took the marathon past the Serraria Souza Pinto and over the Viaduto Santa Tereza, out to the Horto Florestal and the UFMG Natural History Museum, past Arena MRV and the Pompéia sports complex, with views of the Serra do Curral along the way.
Read the full course notes
Belo Horizonte sits at roughly 850 m and is built on hills, so expect a steady sequence of climbs and descents rather than a flat run. The 42K has a 6-hour limit, which leaves room to walk the steepest pitches.
- Terrain
- Hilly
- Distances
- 5K, Half marathon, Marathon
- Field
- More than 5,000 runners in the first edition (2026)
- Weather on race day
- Mid-May is the dry season in Belo Horizonte, and the 5:00 start is usually cool, around 13–17 °C, warming into the low to mid-20s by late morning under clear skies. Low humidity and strong sun mean you lose fluid without noticing, so drink to a plan and wear sun protection for the second half.
What to train for
This is a hilly city marathon, so climbing strength matters as much as pace: run a weekly hill session of 6 to 10 repeats of 1 to 3 minutes and do your long runs of 28 to 34 km on hilly routes.
Practise running downhill relaxed and quick, because the descents load the quads late in the race.
Set your goal by effort and expect a finishing time a few minutes slower than you would run on a flat course.
Sample week
A sample Belo Horizonte Marathon training week
A week from the middle of the build, about six weeks out. Your plan sets the real distances and paces from your own fitness and adjusts them every week as you train.
- Monday
- Rest, or 20 minutes of mobility
- Tuesday Key session
- Hill repeats: 10 × 90 s up a steady grade, jog back down
- Wednesday
- Easy run, 10–11 km
- Thursday Key session
- Goal-pace run, 16 km with 10 km at race pace
- Friday
- Recovery run, 6 km, or cross-train
- Saturday Key session
- Long run, 26–29 km on hilly ground, steady effort on the climbs
- Sunday
- Easy run, 6 km, then 6 relaxed strides
Your build to race day
Taper
Tapering for the Belo Horizonte Marathon
Start the taper two to three weeks before race day. Cut your weekly volume by about a third, then by half in race week, and keep a few short efforts at race pace so your legs stay sharp. The course is hilly, so keep one short hill session in the first taper week to keep the climbs familiar. With the race on May 16, 2027, your taper starts around April 28, 2027.
Also in Claude
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Add AthleteSpace to Claude once, then paste this prompt and put in your own numbers.
Build me a training plan for the Maratona Oficial de Belo Horizonte (Marathon) on May 16, 2027. I run [distance] a week, [days] days a week, easy pace [pace].
Belo Horizonte Marathon training questions
How long should I train for the Belo Horizonte Marathon?
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 Belo Horizonte Marathon course hilly?
Hilly. The second edition of the city's official marathon starts and finishes at Praça da Estação on Avenida dos Andradas at 5:00, with a new half marathon and a 5 km night run joining the programme for Belo Horizonte's 130th anniversary.
What is the weather usually like at the Belo Horizonte Marathon?
Mid-May is the dry season in Belo Horizonte, and the 5:00 start is usually cool, around 13–17 °C, warming into the low to mid-20s by late morning under clear skies. Low humidity and strong sun mean you lose fluid without noticing, so drink to a plan and wear sun protection for the second half.
When should I start tapering for the Belo Horizonte Marathon?
Start the taper two to three weeks before race day. Cut your weekly volume by about a third, then by half in race week, and keep a few short efforts at race pace so your legs stay sharp. The course is hilly, so keep one short hill session in the first taper week to keep the climbs familiar. With the race on May 16, 2027, your taper starts around April 28, 2027.
Do I need an account to get a Belo Horizonte Marathon 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.