Marathon
Strength
Program.
A 16-week strength program built to sit alongside your marathon plan — so you arrive on race day stronger, more resilient, and running with the form you trained for in week one.
One-time purchase · Instant download · Lifetime access
Strength
Program.
Why strength matters
Running alone won't
get you to the start line.
Most marathon plans tell you how to run further. Very few tell you how to stay running. By week 12, when long runs creep past 30km, the runners who break down are almost always the ones who skipped strength.
This program is the strength piece your marathon plan is missing. Two sessions a week, intentionally designed to fit around your long runs and tempo work — never compete with them. The result is a body that handles 42.2km the way you trained it to.
Whether this is your first 42.2 or your tenth, the same truth holds: strength is what lets you train consistently, and consistency is what gets you to the line in shape to race.
What you get
Everything you need.
Nothing you don't.
Two professionally designed assets, delivered the moment you purchase. Built to be used together — and built to last well beyond your first marathon.
The PDF Program Guide
Beautifully designed, easy to navigate, and complete with every session laid out across four progressive blocks. Includes warm-ups, exercise sequencing, sets, reps, tempo, rest periods, and clickable links to video demonstrations of every movement.
The Excel Tracking Spreadsheet
Log your weights every session and watch your progression unfold. The spreadsheet mirrors the program week-by-week so you always know what you lifted last time — and what to push for next session.
Optional Mobility Sessions
Three structured mobility sessions you can drop in between strength days or after long runs. Built specifically for runners — focused on hips, calves, hamstrings, and the postural muscles that hold up over distance.
Recovery & Nutrition Guide
The full recovery protocol used in our clinic — including a regeneration points system, hydration markers, and evidence-based nutrition guidelines for endurance athletes. Recover better, train harder.
Alternate Exercise Library
Every primary lift comes with two alternate exercises. Travelling, busy gym, or limited equipment? Swap the movement, keep the program. No session ever has to be skipped.
The 16-week progression
Four blocks. One peak.
Race-ready by week 16.
Each block builds on the last. Volume and intensity are dialled up gradually, so your body adapts without overload — the most common reason runners abandon strength training in the first place.
Establish movement quality and rebuild the structural base. Lower intensity, higher volume — designed to be added on top of running without disrupting it.
Volume sustained, intensity steps up. Build the kind of strength endurance that still produces force in the second half of a long run.
Heavier loads, lower reps. Maximal strength gains that translate directly into a more economical, more powerful stride.
Convert strength into speed. Faster contractions, ballistic work, and a taper that leaves you fresh, sharp, and ready for the start line.
Why this works
Six gains that
change race day.
Running Economy
Stronger muscles produce the same force with less effort. Every kilometre costs you less energy — and that compounds across 42.2.
Power & Stride
Build leg, hip, and torso strength to generate more force per step. Same cadence, longer stride, faster splits.
Form Under Fatigue
Stronger postural muscles hold their shape when everything else is falling apart. The reason your form survives the final 10km.
Joint Resilience
Tendons and ligaments adapt to load like muscles do. Build them slowly here so they don't break down on the road.
Muscle Balance
Targeted glute, hamstring, calf, and lumbopelvic work corrects the compensations running quietly creates over high mileage.
Load Tolerance
Handle higher weekly volumes, faster paces, and tougher long runs without breaking down. The foundation every PB is built on.
Built to fit, not compete
Designed to sit alongside
your marathon plan.
This program doesn't ask you to drop your running schedule. It's intentionally programmed to slot in around your easy runs, tempo days, and long runs — supporting them, not stealing from them.
A typical training week
An example only — strength days can be moved to suit your week. The program is designed to flex around your run schedule, not the other way around.
Is this for me?
Built for runners with
a finish line in sight.
Whether you're chasing your first 42.2 or your fastest, this program assumes you're already running. What it adds is the structural strength to do that running better, longer, and with fewer setbacks.
If you're earlier in your running journey or building toward a 5K–21K, our Base Strength Builder is the better starting point.
First-time marathoners building toward their debut 42.2km
Experienced marathoners chasing a new PB or BQ time
Runners adding structured strength training for the first time
Runners returning from time off, off-season, or a previous injury
Runners who keep breaking down at peak training weeks
Anyone tired of generic gym programs that ignore running
A preview of what's inside
Sample session.
Block 1, Session 1.
Every session in the program is laid out exactly like this — with progressive reps across each week of the block.
| Seq | Exercise | Sets | Reps W1 | Reps W4 | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WU | Rainbow Stretch | 1 | 10ea | 10ea | n/a |
| WU | 7 Way Hip | 2 | 5ea | 10ea | 30s |
| WU | Calf Raise Pulse | 2 | 20 | 30 | 30s |
| A1 | Trapbar Deadlift | 3 | 12 | 8 | 2–3 min |
| A2 | Box Landing | 3 | 3 | 5 | 1–2 min |
| B1 | Eccentric Pull Ups | 3 | 5 | 7 | 1–2 min |
| B2 | Front Foot Elev. Reverse Lunge | 3 | 8ea | 8ea | 1–2 min |
| C1 | Roller Glute Bridge Holds | 3 | 5 | 6 | 1–2 min |
| C2 | Alternating Dumbbell Press | 3 | 10ea | 8ea | 1–2 min |
| D1 | Double Leg Calf Raise | 3 | 20 | 15 | 30–90s |
| D2 | Counterweight Deadbug | 3 | 8ea | 8ea | 30–90s |
What runners are saying
Real results.
Real marathoners.
"My third marathon, but the first one I finished without my hips falling apart in the last 8km. The progressive blocks made it sustainable — I never felt smashed before a long run."
PB by 11 minutes"I've tried strength programs before but always quit because they wrecked my legs for running. This one actually works around the running. That's what made me stick with all 16 weeks."
Finished her debut injury-free"The Excel sheet alone is worth the price. I knew exactly what I lifted last week and what to push for. Felt like I had a coach in the gym with me every session."
BQ by 4 minutesCommon
questions.
Everything you need to know before you start.
Two files, delivered instantly by email: a professionally designed PDF program guide with all 16 weeks of training, full exercise descriptions, sets, reps, tempo, rest periods, and clickable links to video demonstrations — and an Excel spreadsheet that lets you log your weights every session and track progression across the full block structure.
Yes — this is purely the strength side of marathon prep. It's designed to pair with whatever marathon running plan you're following, whether that's Hal Higdon, Pfitzinger, a coach-written plan, or something you've built yourself. The program slots two strength sessions a week into your existing schedule.
Ideally 16 weeks out from race day, so you peak the week before. If you're starting later, begin in Block 2 or 3 depending on your existing strength base. If you have more than 16 weeks, repeat Block 1 to extend the foundation phase before progressing.
Standard commercial gym equipment: barbell, dumbbells, kettlebells, a bench, resistance bands, a sled, and basic gym machines. Every primary exercise comes with two alternate options if specific equipment isn't available.
No — the entire program is designed to support running, not compete with it. Volume and intensity are calibrated so strength sessions don't leave you smashed for your tempo or long run days. We recommend leaving 24 hours between a strength session and a long run.
If you've never trained for a marathon before, this program is appropriate as long as you have a base level of running fitness and can train safely in a gym. If you're newer to running entirely or building toward a 5K–21K, our Base Strength Builder is a better starting point and a natural lead-in to this program.
Because this is the same program our Accredited Exercise Physiologists use with our marathon-running clients in clinic — fully periodised across four blocks, with progression built in week-on-week, alternate exercises for every primary lift, and a tracking spreadsheet that mirrors the program structure. It's the difference between a generic PDF and a 16-week clinical program. Still less than two physio appointments.
Yes — every primary lift has two alternate exercises built in. If you have a specific injury or limitation that the alternates don't accommodate, contact us at reception@4dhp.com and we'll point you toward suitable substitutions or recommend a 1:1 consult with one of our EPs.
As this is a digital product delivered instantly on purchase, we're unable to offer refunds once the file has been downloaded. If you have any issues accessing your file, contact us at reception@4dhp.com and we'll sort it out.
Build the strength.
Run the marathon.
16 weeks of progressive strength training, designed to sit alongside your marathon plan and deliver you to the start line ready to race.