By Will Boyle — 2:31 Marathoner
There are just over six weeks to go until the start of the 2026 Dublin City Marathon.
At this point in your block, the race still feels far enough away that there is time to make a meaningful difference but close enough that every decision can suddenly feel decisive. The biggest sessions have started appearing on your training plan, race-day conversations are getting louder & you're probably more aware of your fitness and everyone else’s training than you were a month ago. Welcome to the business end of a marathon block.
Last year I ran 2:31 for the marathon, but I haven't always handled these final weeks perfectly. Like most runners, I've forced sessions the legs weren't there for, compared my training with other athletes and treated fatigue as an indicator that I was working hard enough. Experience has taught me that the final phase is less about finding one heroic session and more about stacking sensible weeks together, protecting the fitness you've built already and arriving at the start line ready to put it to good use.
Here's 5 things I'd focus on over the next few weeks.
1. Don't Try & Win The Marathon In Training
As race day fast approaches, it can become very tempting to search for reassurance from one huge key workout. You start to look for a session that proves your shape and confirms everything is right on track for the big day.
It's understandable, but marathon training doesn't always offer those neat moments of validation. At some point the stream of life will throw a curve-ball and you're all but bound to meet a hard workout on a day defined by stress outside of running, illness, tired legs, bad weather and any one of a million other variables that lie outside of your control. Likely, it's going to feel harder than you initially hoped it would. Keep the head, it's all apart of the process. The meaningful work you've done hasn't gone anywhere.
Remember, the purpose of a session is to create an adaptation not to produce a masterclass for kudos on Strava. Stick to the structure of the plan and don't be afraid to adjust your pace targets by effort when there's added stress at play. When the legs are full of miles, your body deserves more respect than ever and so do your hard workouts. The best sessions are the ones you absorb well ready to build on from.
2. Don't Play Catchup
So, you've had a rough block and the clock's starting to tick on. You started late, missed a few long runs here and there and all of a sudden your Strava feed feels like it was designed to remind you of all the work you haven't done. Sound familiar? I've been there too.
It might feel tempting to start cramming months' worth of work into a handful of weeks. Add in an extra long run. Squeeze in an extra session. Push the mileage higher than planned. I've done this too - Don't.
Unfortunately, you can't retroactively bank fitness from the work you've missed and trying to force it back into these final few weeks is one of the quickest ways to turn an imperfect build-up into a disastrous one. Make peace with the fact that shaileip has sd, stop looking backwards at what you should/could have done and start looking at what you can do with the remaining weeks available to you. Training for a marathon isn't like studying for an exam, you can't overdose on caffeine, pull an all nighter and show up with your fingers crossed. This line of work is a real slow burner and your body needs time to absorb the training.
Ask yourself: what can I realistically do from here that gives me the best chance of arriving healthy, fit and fresh on the start-line? That likely looks like a different training structure than you originally planned and it might mean adjusting your race day expectations too. A slightly undercooked athlete that lines up healthy has a much better chance of having a decent marathon than an exhausted soul who spent the last few weeks of block desperately trying to play catchup. Make the most of the fitness you have, build on it sensibly where possible, and get yourself to the start-line in one piece ready to enjoy what is arguably the best day on Ireland's athletic calendar.
3. Rehearse Your Fuelling Now
I'm going to expand on the old reliable "don't try anything new on race day" golden rule and urge you to avoid trying anything new on race month where possible. Now is the time to be dress rehearsing the fundamentals so everything starts to run like clockwork and you feel like a well oiled machine by the time the big day arrives. Fuelling is at the very centre of that conversation.
There's 6 Sundays between now and the Dublin Marathon. Depending on your taper strategy and your half-marathon racing plans - that probably leaves you with 4 real chances for a long run. Consider them as four opportunities to nail your race day fuelling strategy.
Start practising the complete routine: what you eat beforehand, your carbohydrate intake, how frequently you plan to take fuel onboard and how you'll carry everything on race-day. If you're planning to use aid stations, make sure you know where they are and think about how that might change the timings of your fuelling strategy.
If you're caught between conflicting advice and finding a fuelling strategy that works for you feels overwhelming - don't worry, we've got you covered. The new Altar™ Fuelling Calculator is a tool we built to help you fundamentally understand exactly what your body needs to perform before, during and after. Whether you're new to fuelling or an experienced marathoner just looking to optimise your approach, the calculator takes into account both your goal time and experience and constructs an optimal race day fuelling plan unique to your needs.
The marathon exposes small mistakes over a long period of time; a practical, straightforward fuelling plan will help eliminate guesswork and minimise the risk of error so you're always ready for the long road ahead. Fail to prepare, prepare to fail as they say...
4. Treat Your Recovery Like You Would Your Training
Sometimes in the thick of these last few weeks, rest can feel like the least productive part of training. It's tempting to keep your foot on the gas and make hay when the sun shines but remember recover is a key piece of the puzzle that allows your training to work.
Pay attention to the basics. Get a good nights sleep as consistently as your life allows. Make sure you're eating enough to support the demands of your training load. Keep easy days genuinely easy and pay attention to anything your body might be trying to tell you: changes in mood, difficulty sleeping, loss of appetite and fatigue that won't let up aren't just normal parts of marathon training - they can be signs that you're asking more of your body than it's currently able to handle.
Some fatigue is expected during a marathon block, it's a real part of the process, but a downward trend that continues for several days deserves attention. Backing off briefly is not a loss of discipline; sometimes it is the decision that saves your race.
Earlier this year, I found the best shape of my life training to run ~2:28 at the London Marathon. Just three weeks before race-day, I was diagnosed with a sacral stress fracture that ruled me out and left me sidelined for most of the year. I'm still picking up the pieces now. In those final training weeks I was fixated on my goal, terrified to take my foot off the gas and convinced rest would get in the way of my ability to reach my full potential in London.
In hindsight I was naive and distracted so much by breakthrough fitness that I forgot to protect it. Don't make the same mistakes I did. Listen to your body, give it the respect it deserves and remember that recovery is a huge part of your training too.
5. Don't Forget To Enjoy Yourself
How increasingly easy it is to get lost in the numbers. It's great to be focused on a goal and let that carrot loom in the distance to get you out the door day after day, but don't forget to look up and soak it all in from time to time. If your marathon experience revolves solely around the data on your wrist and the time on the board when you cross the line, you're missing a trick or two...
We won't be able to do this forever and trust me when I'll tell you that you'll miss it when it's not there. There's a simple beauty in the mundanity, a thrill in the challenge and an excitement in the process of it all - don't wish that away because you're distracted by a number so arbitrary and meaningless.
They're going to close the streets of the city so you can run a victory lap and everyone will line the streets to roar you home. It will send shivers down your spine, you'll never forget it. Savour these moments, they're the ones that changed my life and they might just change yours too.
From all of us here on the team at Altar™, best of luck with the rest of your training. We see you, day after day, week after week, bringing your best and refusing to settle for less. Know that we are with you every step of the way, whatever challenge you face. Godspeed
- Will
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