Huntsville, AL · December
Rocket City Marathon Training Plan
A free 5k, 10k, half marathon, and marathon plan for the Rocket City 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
- 5K, 10K, Half marathon, Marathon
- Course
- Flat
- Usually held
- Each December
The Rocket City Marathon course
One of the older marathons in the South, run by the Huntsville Track Club for nearly fifty years and a long-standing Boston qualifier for people who want a late-season attempt. The marathon starts and finishes at the Von Braun Center downtown and loops out through residential Huntsville, and it is flat enough that the profile is not the limiting factor. The half, 10K, and 5K run the following day.
Weather on race day
Mid-December in northern Alabama is usually cold and dry: a start in the 30s, a finish in the 40s or low 50s. Those are close to ideal marathon conditions, which is much of the appeal.
What to train for
Goal-pace specificity. On a flat course the race is a pacing exercise and nothing else, so the training that matters is long runs with substantial blocks at target pace. Build the ability to hold rhythm without a big crowd around you, because for much of the second half there will not be one.
Registration and official details: Rocket City Marathon official site
Rocket City Marathon training questions
How long should I train for the Rocket City 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 Rocket City Marathon course hilly?
Flat. One of the older marathons in the South, run by the Huntsville Track Club for nearly fifty years and a long-standing Boston qualifier for people who want a late-season attempt. The marathon starts and finishes at the Von Braun Center downtown and loops out through residential Huntsville, and it is flat enough that the profile is not the limiting factor. The half, 10K, and 5K run the following day.
What is the weather usually like at the Rocket City Marathon?
Mid-December in northern Alabama is usually cold and dry: a start in the 30s, a finish in the 40s or low 50s. Those are close to ideal marathon conditions, which is much of the appeal.
Do I need an account to get a Rocket City 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.
Other races
- Mercedes-Benz Marathon training plan · Birmingham, AL
- Rock 'n' Roll Nashville training plan · Nashville, TN
- Flying Monkey Marathon training plan · Nashville, TN
- Tom King Classic training plan · Nashville, TN
- Franklin Classic training plan · Franklin, TN
- The Middle Half training plan · Murfreesboro, TN