Your plan in four answers
Set for July 25, 2027, about 39 weeks out.
- Distances
- 5K, 10K, Half marathon, Marathon, 84K
- Terrain
- Hilly
- Field
- About 6,600 marathon finishers in 2025, plus the half marathons, 10K and 5Ks
- Taper starts
- July 7, 2027
Course
The SF Marathon course
The marathon starts on the Embarcadero at 5:15 AM in waves and finishes on the Embarcadero at Howard Street. The route passes Fisherman's Wharf, the Marina Green and Crissy Field, climbs to and crosses the Golden Gate Bridge, briefly enters Marin and comes back, reaching halfway as you exit the bridge.
Read the full course notes
The second half crosses the Presidio into Golden Gate Park, runs down Haight Street and through the city to finish near the homes of the Warriors and Giants. Unofficial measurements put total climbing around 1,300 feet, with the main climbs near miles 7, 12 and 16 and more than half of it in the first half. The first and last two miles are nearly flat, and finishers have 6 hours.
- Terrain
- Hilly
- Distances
- 5K, 10K, Half marathon, Marathon, 84K
- Field
- About 6,600 marathon finishers in 2025, plus the half marathons, 10K and 5Ks
- Weather on race day
- July in San Francisco usually means a cool, foggy start: the race calls 50 to 55 °F the classic start, with low 60s later in the morning and a historical race temperature of 64 °F. Fog feels damp and the Golden Gate Bridge is the windiest spot on the course, but sticky humidity is rare. Dress for mile 2, not the start line, and bring a warm layer for the finish.
What to train for
This course is about hills early and patience late, so train climbing at steady effort and descending with quick, light steps.
Do one long run every two weeks on hilly roads with 1,000 to 1,500 feet of gain, and practise not chasing pace on the climbs around miles 7 and 12.
Weekly 6 to 8 x 2 minutes uphill builds the strength, and relaxed downhill strides spare your quads for the second half. Expect the course to cost a few minutes against a flat marathon and set goal pace accordingly.
Sample week
A sample SF 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, 6–7 mi
- Thursday Key session
- Goal-pace run, 10 mi with 6 mi at race pace
- Friday
- Recovery run, 4 mi, or cross-train
- Saturday Key session
- Long run, 16–18 mi on hilly ground, steady effort on the climbs
- Sunday
- Easy run, 4 mi, then 6 relaxed strides
Your build to race day
Taper
Tapering for the SF 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 July 25, 2027, your taper starts around July 7, 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 The San Francisco Marathon on July 25, 2027. I run [distance] a week, [days] days a week, easy pace [pace].
SF Marathon training questions
How long should I train for the SF 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 SF Marathon course hilly?
Hilly. The marathon starts on the Embarcadero at 5:15 AM in waves and finishes on the Embarcadero at Howard Street.
What is the weather usually like at the SF Marathon?
July in San Francisco usually means a cool, foggy start: the race calls 50 to 55 °F the classic start, with low 60s later in the morning and a historical race temperature of 64 °F. Fog feels damp and the Golden Gate Bridge is the windiest spot on the course, but sticky humidity is rare. Dress for mile 2, not the start line, and bring a warm layer for the finish.
When should I start tapering for the SF 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 July 25, 2027, your taper starts around July 7, 2027.
Do I need an account to get a SF 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.