Smart Marathon Training: Run Your Best Without Running Yourself Ragged

Old-school marathon training plans ask runners to crank out 70 to 100 miles a week. It's no wonder those who make it to the start line are running ragged. Smart Marathon Training maps out a healthier, more economical approach to training that emphasizes quality over quantity.

With more than 75 detailed exercises plus six easy-to-follow training plans for half and full marathons, Smart Marathon Training will get you to the starting line feeling refreshed and ready to run your best race yet.

This innovative program eliminates junk miles, paring down training to three essential runs per week and adding a dynamic strength and cross-training program to build overall fitness. Runners will train for their best performance in less time and avoid the injuries, overtraining, and burnout that come from running too much.

Smart Marathon Training builds up a runner's body to resist injury. Runners gain the strength they need to run long using functional exercises that target the hips, glutes, and quads. Running is a full-body sport, so this training program also builds a strong core and upper body to avoid injuries that begin above the waist.

No one fakes a marathon or half-marathon--everyone has to do the work. But Smart Marathon Training replaces long, grinding miles with low-impact cross-training. Horowitz outlines a cycling plan to complement run workouts, boosting base fitness while saving runners' bodies for their best runs.

Jeff Horowitz is a certified running and triathlon coach, a personal trainer, and has run more than 150 marathons across 6 continents. Formerly an attorney, he quit law to pursue his passion for endurance sport, and now works with DC Tri, The Nations Triathlon, and the non-profit summer camp ACHIEVE Kids Tri, as well as Strides for Hope, a charity fundraising training group that benefits The Wellness Community.