Your plan in four answers
Paris Marathon has not announced its next date, so we have estimated April. Change the date below once you know it.
- Distances
- Marathon
- Terrain
- Flat
Course
The Paris Marathon course
Starts on the Champs-Élysées and runs through the Bois de Vincennes, along the Seine, and out to the Bois de Boulogne. Mostly flat, with a handful of short tunnels along the river where GPS drops out and the air is noticeably warmer.
Read the full course notes
Cobbled sections appear early and are more of a footing nuisance than a real obstacle.
- Terrain
- Flat
- Distances
- Marathon
- Weather on race day
- Early April in Paris is mild and changeable: starts in the 40s, highs in the 50s or 60s, with rain a regular feature. A warm year turns the exposed Seine sections into the hardest part of the race.
What to train for
Even pacing through the tunnels and river miles, and some running on uneven surfaces.
Know your goal splits by kilometre rather than relying on a watch that will drift underground.
The second half through the Bois de Boulogne is quieter and windier than the first, so save something for it.
Sample week
A sample Paris 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
Taper
Tapering for the Paris 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.
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 Schneider Electric Marathon de Paris in April. I run [distance] a week, [days] days a week, easy pace [pace].
Paris Marathon training questions
How long should I train for the Paris 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 Paris Marathon course hilly?
Flat. Starts on the Champs-Élysées and runs through the Bois de Vincennes, along the Seine, and out to the Bois de Boulogne.
What is the weather usually like at the Paris Marathon?
Early April in Paris is mild and changeable: starts in the 40s, highs in the 50s or 60s, with rain a regular feature. A warm year turns the exposed Seine sections into the hardest part of the race.
When should I start tapering for the Paris 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.
Do I need an account to get a Paris 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.