Full marathon how long

You can compare your goal or actual marathon time to the averages for your age and sex. Your fitness level will also contribute to your time, along with race-day considerations, such as weather and overall health. Use the chart below to see how your time compares to other people in your category. The data was compiled from 21, marathon runners who competed in At a speed of 12 to 15 minutes per mile, beginners can expect to finish a marathon in around 5 to 6.

Once you establish your goal time, figure out an average mile time to set an appropriate pace. Most marathon runners finish a mile every 10 minutes. The average mile time for men is between 9 and 11 minutes. Women average a mile every 10 to 12 minutes. Slow down your pace on most training days. You can add on 30 seconds to 2 minutes per mile. On any given day, your pace may depend on your energy and stress levels, the weather, and the terrain. Other issues that may pop up include joint pain, headaches, and digestive issues.

Take all of these into consideration, and adjust your speed accordingly. Preparation is the most important part of a marathon. It involves more than simply running long distances. In addition to following a marathon training plan , include moderate aerobic activities, such as water aerobics, cycling, and brisk walking. To increase your flexibility, add in some gentle stretching, yoga, or tai chi.

Aerobic exercises that build strength include circuit training, dancing, and martial arts. Record your activity in a journal to keep track of your improvement. Include daily notes, and record your running times every 6 weeks. Adjust your goals accordingly. To build endurance, include one longer run each week. Include at least one full day of rest each week to allow your body to recover. Talk to friends or search online for a running group, or create your own.

Get together for a running session at least once per week. This builds motivation and camaraderie. Plus, you can share tips and feedback. Learn to be more mindful and relaxed in all of your activities.

Make techniques such as progressive muscular relaxation , yoga nidra, and centering meditation a part of your daily schedule.

Allow for plenty of sleep each night. Take time to have a massage, get acupuncture, or simply take a relaxing bath. These habits may help you release muscle tension and lower your heart and breathing rate, which can improve your overall performance. If you need to lose weight, now is the time.

Here are other factors that can affect your marathon finish time. Of course, how long it takes you to complete a marathon will also be determined by your race pace. If you're already a runner you will likely have some data about how to calculate your marathon pace. But if you're brand new to running, you'll want to log some miles for a few weeks to get a sense of your current pace.

Keep in mind that your marathon pace will likely be a little slower than your training pace. Once you know you're training pace, use this pace calculator to help determine your average race pace. A quick formula that a lot of runners like to use is to take a recent half marathon time, double it, and then add 10 to 20 minutes, depending on the difficulty of the course.

It's helpful to have an estimate of your marathon finishing time before you run your first race so you know how to pace yourself properly. You'll also want to give your family members and friends that are cheering for you an idea of when to expect you on the course. Predicting race times, especially for marathons, can be tough because there are so many variables, such as weather and course conditions. Keep in mind that a predicted marathon time is not a guarantee that you'll run that time.

In most cases, only experienced marathoners achieve their predicted time or very close to it. If you decide to run a marathon, remind yourself that any finish time is a good time, especially for a first marathon.

To get a sense of your marathon time in advance you can use race time prediction charts or calculators that determine a finish time based on a recent race. For the most accurate prediction, you should use a race time from a race you've done about 4 to 6 weeks before your marathon. Additionally, if you ran a marathon during the previous year it's a good idea to analyze those results.

The range of finishing times and the number of participants will probably be similar this year. Try the race time prediction calculators below. Some marathons do have time limits , such as 6 or 7 hours although others have no limit. If you're a slower runner or walker, find out if there's a cutoff time when selecting a marathon. Before you sign up for your first marathon know that big city marathons and fast, flat courses tend to be much more competitive than small, local races.

But the advantage of a large marathon is that there will be more racers who are at your same pace, especially at the back of the pack if you find yourself there.

If you're running your first marathon focus on completing the race and finishing strong. Regardless of your time, finishing a marathon is an incredible achievement. There is a vast difference between the time it takes the fastest marathon runner to complete a marathon around 2 hours and a slower runner completing those same There are a lot of factors that go into determining how long it will take a person to run a marathon. Some of what matters include:. Only a tiny fraction of the population can run a marathon under 3 hours or have done so, I should say.

That means almost every human will take longer than 3 hours to run a full marathon. Training will make a night and day difference between how fast someone can get through a marathon. In at the age of 25 years old I ran my first marathon in 4 hours 59 minutes. I wanted to run a marathon, but honestly I was overwhelmed by the amount of mileage it actually took to train for it.

So, I did the bare minimum. Walking took up the majority of my last 6 miles which is not what I had hoped for. Fast forward to At 38 years old I ran my fastest marathon time in just under 3 hours 36 minutes. I followed a day per week running plan and did almost every single run on that plan to a T. I did a lot of speedwork and my highest mileage week was around 52 miles. Ultimately, most people are probably not running enough miles to get the time they want in a marathon.

So, if someone is training less than 40 miles per week at the peak of their training, their marathon time will likely be significantly slower than had they put in upwards of 50 miles per week.

Read my article, Want to be prepared for your marathon? Run More Miles to understand more about why this is true. Training is one factor in why there can be such a big difference between the time it takes one person to finish a full marathon to another.

Need a marathon training plan? As is true with most other sports, age and gender will make a difference in how long it takes to run a marathon. Men usually have more of a natural ability to be faster than women. According to marastats. The average female marathon finish time is 4 hours 39 minutes. And the difference between the male and female world record holders in the marathon is about 14 minutes. Which means I beat a lot of male runners. And there are many women out there much faster than me.

This just means that if everything else were essentially the same, men have a strength and height advantage over women that often allows them to be faster.

Most elite runners reach their peak during their mids, according to this article from the Washington Post.