Your plan in four answers
Set for April 11, 2027, about 24 weeks out.
- Distances
- 5K, 10K, Half marathon, Marathon
- Terrain
- Flat
- Field
- Capped at 14,000 entrants: 4,000 each in the marathon and half, 3,000 each in the 10K and 5K
- Taper starts
- March 24, 2027
Course
The Fortaleza Marathon course
The marathon starts and finishes on Av. Historiador Raimundo Girão in Praia de Iracema and is essentially one long out-and-back along the coast.
Read the full course notes
Runners follow Av. Beira Mar past the Mercado dos Peixes and the Mucuripe port, run the length of Praia do Futuro on Av. Dioguinho and cross the Sabiaguaba bridge, then head out on the CE-010 beside the Sabiaguaba dunes and along Av. Litorânea to a turnaround near Alphaville before retracing the route. The profile is flat, broken only by the bridge, a viaduct and the ramps onto the CE-010. The marathon starts at 4:00 a.m., so most of it is run before the heat builds, with water every 2 km. 2027 is only the second edition, with a 6-hour limit and cut-offs at km 3, 7.3, 20 and 35.5.
- Terrain
- Flat
- Distances
- 5K, 10K, Half marathon, Marathon
- Field
- Capped at 14,000 entrants: 4,000 each in the marathon and half, 3,000 each in the 10K and 5K
- Weather on race day
- April is the heart of Fortaleza's rainy season: expect about 24–26 °C at the 4:00 a.m. start, humidity above 80% and a fair chance of tropical showers, with temperatures passing 30 °C by late morning. The sea breeze helps, but sweat losses will be high, so drink at most of the 2 km stations and take electrolytes from early on.
What to train for
A flat, humid marathon is decided by pacing and hydration discipline.
Build long runs to 32–35 km with the middle 15–20 km at goal pace, drinking and fuelling exactly as you plan to on race day.
With no hills to vary the load, add a weekly 8–12 km tempo at steady effort, and in the last six weeks do some runs in the warmest, most humid conditions you can find. Practise waking at 2:30–3:00 a.m. before a few long runs so the early breakfast and start feel familiar.
Sample week
A sample Fortaleza 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
- Intervals: 5 × 1.5 km at 5K to 10K effort, easy jog between
- 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, the last 6 km at race pace
- Sunday
- Easy run, 6 km, then 6 relaxed strides
Your build to race day
Taper
Tapering for the Fortaleza 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 flat, so pacing decides the day: rehearse your goal pace in short segments during race week. With the race on April 11, 2027, your taper starts around March 24, 2027.
Also in Claude
Ask Claude for this plan
Add AthleteSpace to Claude once, then paste this prompt and put in your own numbers.
Build me a training plan for the Maratona Internacional de Fortaleza (Marathon) on April 11, 2027. I run [distance] a week, [days] days a week, easy pace [pace].
Fortaleza Marathon training questions
How long should I train for the Fortaleza 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 Fortaleza Marathon course hilly?
Flat. The marathon starts and finishes on Av.
What is the weather usually like at the Fortaleza Marathon?
April is the heart of Fortaleza's rainy season: expect about 24–26 °C at the 4:00 a.m. start, humidity above 80% and a fair chance of tropical showers, with temperatures passing 30 °C by late morning. The sea breeze helps, but sweat losses will be high, so drink at most of the 2 km stations and take electrolytes from early on.
When should I start tapering for the Fortaleza 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 flat, so pacing decides the day: rehearse your goal pace in short segments during race week. With the race on April 11, 2027, your taper starts around March 24, 2027.
Do I need an account to get a Fortaleza 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.