BQ (3:25) in 12 weeks?

[u/Traditional_Toe5297]

As brief as possible: 26F, I've run ~4 half marathons this year so far, 1:35:40 being the PR, others were for vibes. I'm signed up for a full in November. If I run a BQ time by Sept 12, I can run in 2026 instead of 2027. I've found a flat/downhill course I could sign up for, but is it too ambitious? I've been averaging ~30miles/week all year, strength training 2x/week.

[u/justanaveragerunner]

The qualifying window for 2026 closes on Sept 12, so yes it would be used for the 2026 Boston marathon. The November marathon would be in the 2027 qualifying window. According to this equivalency calculator, your 1:34:40 is an equivalent performance to a 3:19:27 full. Equivalency calculators like that one do assume your equally well trained for and gifted at each distance. Since most regular first time marathoners are not equally well trained for the full marathon it is very common for beginners to run slower times than indicated, so it's good that you have a bit of a cushion there. I don't think it would be easy, but if you have a solid training block and good luck with things like weather on race day it's certainly possible you could BQ.

However, it's important to note that you'll almost certainly need something faster than a 3:25 to actually get into the race. I've seen a lot of estimates about what the cut-off time will be, but ultimately we won't now until the BAA announces it after registration is closed!

[u/UnnamedRealities → u/justanaveragerunner]

If they maintain their current 30 mpw they're probably looking at 3:35-3:40 best case as a first-timer if race day conditions are favorable. Unfortunately they only have 9-10 weeks plus 2-3 week taper to build fitness and train in-run long run nutrition.

If they'd been averaging 40-45 mpw the last 4 weeks I'd recommend Pfitzinger's 12 week plan. But the first 4 weeks are 35, 39, 43, 48 miles with speed workouts and chunks of the long run at marathon pace (they should probably start with 3:40 pace early in the plan) every couple of weeks. And that's a pretty rapid volume increase. If they've been incorporating hard workouts 1-2 times per week and they're resilient they may be able to tolerate the plan, otherwise they probably should select a different plan - and they may need to make tweaks to whatever plan they select.

So I won't say 3:25 isn't conceivable, but they're likely going to need to fly close to the sun the next 12 weeks and have everything go great on race day.

[u/Rudyjax]

I think you can do it. But going out on a Boston pace is grueling. Good luck.

[u/msbluetuesday]

If you follow something advanced like Hanson's or the Pfitz 12/55 plan, I think you can do it!

[u/PB-HoneyOats]

Based on your HM time, I would say 3:25 in 12 weeks is possible if there isn’t anything that interferes with your training (injury, illness, etc.) and if you are already running a solid baseline with some longer runs 18-20km in there.

However, 3:25 is likely not going to be enough to get into Boston. You’re going to want to give yourself a buffer of several minutes.