Free. Personalized. Adapts to your life.
A training plan that actually fits your life.
Personalized running plans for 5K through marathon — built around your schedule, not the other way around. Backed by real sports science, not generic templates.
- 5K · 10K · Half · Marathon
- Beginner → Advanced
- 100% free. No paywall.
- Syncs with Strava & Garmin
Built by a runner who trains around a real life, not instead of it. Read why Pheidi exists →
Your Life Doesn't Fit a Spreadsheet
Most training plans assume you have a perfectly predictable life. Wake up at 6, run at 7, never get sick, never have a holiday, never work late. But that's not how it works.
We built this app because every other plan treats your schedule like an afterthought. We made it the starting point.
- Tuesday. Dentist appointment. Run cancelled. Your plan just sits there.
- Week 10. Family vacation. You improvise. The plan falls apart.
- Saturday. Kid's soccer moved to your long run slot. You skip it again.
- Midnight. Googling "how to adjust marathon plan" for the fourth time this month.
Three Steps to a Plan That Bends Around You
From "what's my goal" to "the plan runs itself" in three steps. No spreadsheets, no recalculating, no guilt.
See the deep dive- 01
Tell Us About Your Goal
Pick your race distance and when you want to run it. Choose your experience level or let the app figure it out from your running history. Select how many days a week you can run and how much time you actually have — including shower time. That's it.
- 02
Get a Plan Built on Research
Your plan is generated using evidence from peer-reviewed studies and established coaching methods — not a one-size-fits-all template. It follows proper periodization (Base → Build → Peak → Taper), uses smart mileage progression, and respects recovery science.
- 03
Life Happens. The Plan Adapts.
Missed a run? The app reschedules intelligently — no guilt, no penalty. Going on vacation? It redistributes your training. Holiday coming up? The plan adjusts automatically. You don't manage the plan. The plan manages itself around you.
Everything you need. Nothing you don't.
Twelve features, three things they care about: your life, your body, and what the research actually says.
Chapter 01 · Your life
The plan bends around you.
Your schedule, your week, your calendar — the plan adapts to all of it.
Your Calendar Comes First
Tell the app what your week looks like — which days you can run, how much time you have each day, even whether you need to factor in shower time before work. The plan fits into your available windows, not the other way around.
- Set different time budgets for each day (45 min Tuesday, 90 min Saturday)
- Built-in transition time calculator with 5 presets
- Works for shift workers with non-standard schedules
- Variable 5-to-14-day training cycles — not locked to a 7-day week Coming soon
- Night shift handling Coming soon
- Mid-plan schedule changes
Missing 7–13 days of training results in roughly a 4.25% race time slowdown. Missing 28+ days leads to about 8%. Our algorithm minimizes this by protecting key workouts and redistributing volume intelligently.
Based on data from Runners Connect and Luke Humphrey Running
Source: Runners Connect / Luke Humphrey Running
The Plan Lives Where You Live — Your Calendar
Your training calendar syncs directly to Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, or Outlook as time-blocked events — not useless all-day placeholders. Your tempo run shows up at 6:30 AM alongside your 9 AM meeting and your kid's soccer at 4 PM.
- 4 views: daily detail, weekly overview, monthly big picture, full timeline
- Live .ics subscription feed — auto-updates when plan changes
- Two-way sync: reschedule in Google Calendar, it syncs back Coming soon
- Drag-and-drop rescheduling with smart swap rules
- Color-coded by workout type
- Print/PDF export for runners who tape their plan to the fridge
- Easy
- Hard
- Cross
- Race
Three Runs a Week or Seven — It's Your Call
Not everyone has time for 6 runs a week. And not everyone wants to run only 3. We give you four modes and let you choose.
- Minimal (3/week): FIRST/Furman method — long run, tempo, speed
- Moderate (4–5/week): The sweet spot for most runners
- High (6–7/week): For daily runners. Every day has purpose.
- Elite (doubles): AM/PM scheduling for 80+ km/week runners
Chapter 02 · Every runner
Different bodies need different plans.
First 5K or twentieth marathon. Twenty-five or sixty-five. The plan starts where you actually are.
First 5K or Twentieth Marathon — Start Where You Are
A beginner training for their first half marathon needs a fundamentally different plan than someone who's run five. Not just slower paces — different workout types, progression limits, weekly structures, and mental framing.
- Three levels: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced
- Beginners: run/walk method (Galloway), base building, intervals held back early
- Intermediate & Advanced: full workout variety, intervals from the start
- Higher levels start with a bigger long-run share (25% → 40%)
- Run frequency comes from your volume mode, not your level
Jeff Galloway's run/walk method achieves a 98% marathon finish rate. Our beginner plans use run/walk intervals as a first-class feature.
Jeff Galloway's marathon program data
Beginner
- 25% long-run start
- Core workout types
- Base building available
- Run/walk intervals
- No doubles
Intermediate
- 35% long-run start
- + Intervals & fartlek
- Higher peak mileage
- Hill repeats
- No doubles
Advanced
- 40% long-run start
- Full workout library
- Highest peak mileage
- No run/walk
- Doubles (Elite mode)
The Couch-to-5K Problem, Solved
Traditional C25K programs have a well-known dropout problem — the jump from Week 4 to Week 5 increases continuous running time by 72.7% in a single week. Runners hit a wall, fail the workout, and quit.
We cap the increase in continuous running duration between any two weeks at 50%. If you need more time, the plan adds transition weeks automatically. No walls. No failure points. Just steady progress.
- Pre-plan base building for absolute beginners
- 50% max increase cap on continuous run duration between weeks
- Automatic transition weeks inserted when gaps are too large
- Positive-only messaging — no grades, no failure language
Source: C25K program analysis, internal modeling
Your Body at 50 Is Not Your Body at 25. Your Plan Shouldn't Be Either.
Recovery takes longer as you age. Tendons adapt more slowly. VO2max declines. But that doesn't mean you can't train hard — you just need smarter recovery timing and adjusted progression.
- Age brackets: Under 40, 40–49, 50–59, 60+
- Longer recovery between hard efforts: ~1 day (under 40) up to 3 days (60+)
- Extended warm-ups for older runners (up to 15 min)
- Non-standard 9–10 day cycles for 60+ runners Coming soon
- Returning masters: gradual ramp-back at 50–60% of previous volume Coming soon
VO2max declines roughly 0.5–1% per year from age 35. But research shows no notable decline in performance in masters athletes who maintain consistent training. Slower recovery, not less capability, is what changes.
Exercise physiology research on masters athletes
Source: Exercise physiology research
Source: Masters athlete research
No Grades. No Guilt. No Red Numbers.
Other apps show you a score after every run. Ran 4.8 km instead of 5? That's a 96%. Skipped a day? Red X. We don't do that.
Internally, the app tracks everything it needs to adjust your plan. But you'll never see a grade, a score, or a failure message. If you ran shorter, the app silently recalibrates. If you skipped, it reschedules. No guilt. Just forward progress.
- No workout grades or scores shown
- Missed workouts rescheduled, not marked as failures
- Weekly summaries focus on what you did, not what you missed
- Plan completion target is 90% — because life happens
Other Apps
Pheidi
Chapter 03 · The science
Backed by real research, not bro science.
Every algorithm traces to peer-reviewed studies or established coaching methodology. No influencer advice.
The 10% Rule Is Outdated. We Use Better Science.
The "10% rule" has been the default advice for decades. But recent research shows it's an oversimplification that doesn't actually predict injury well. We use an adaptive stepped progression model calibrated to your current volume.
- Adaptive increase rates: up to 15% at low volume, 7% at high volume
- Configurable deload patterns: linear, 2-up-1-down, 3-up-1-down
- Single-session spike guard (2025 BJSM, n=5,200)
- Jack Daniels' equilibrium method: increase, hold, then increase again
A 2012 Aarhus University study found that 47 uninjured novice runners averaged 22.1% weekly volume increases without injury. A 2025 BJSM cohort study (n=5,200) found single-session spikes are the better injury predictor.
Aarhus University (2012), BJSM (2025)
Source: Aarhus University (2012), Jack Daniels
Weekly Mileage Jump
Weak Predictor Aarhus (2012)Single-Session Spike
Strong Predictor BJSM (2025, n=5,200)80% Easy. 20% Hard. Zero Junk Miles.
The most common training mistake? Running too hard on easy days and too easy on hard days. You end up stuck in a "gray zone" that doesn't build fitness efficiently. Our app tracks your intensity distribution and coaches you back — gently.
- 3-zone model: Easy, Threshold, High Intensity
- Real-time gray zone detection with coaching nudges
- Intensity dashboard showing actual distribution vs targets
- Phase-adjusted targets: more easy in base, more intensity in build/peak
- Works in VDOT mode (pace) and RPE mode (effort)
Dr. Stephen Seiler's research, confirmed by a 2024 PMC meta-analysis, shows 80/20 easy-to-hard ratio produces the best endurance outcomes. r=0.94 correlation between gray zone training and slower race times.
Seiler et al., 2024 PMC meta-analysis
Source: Seiler et al., 2024 PMC meta-analysis
Built for When Things Go Wrong — Hidden Until They Do
You'll never see the injury system until you need it. No health questionnaires during onboarding. But the moment you report pain, the full system activates: pain tracking, run/stop guidance, body-part-specific modifications, and a return-to-running protocol.
- Pain tracking (0–10 scale) with trend analysis
- Evidence-based run/stop decision tree
- Specific modifications for 9 common running injuries
- Proactive injury risk scoring using ACWR
- Entire system disappears when you're healthy
Source: ACWR research, Gabbett (2016)
The Hardest Part of Training Is Doing Less. We've Got You.
Taper anxiety is real. You've trained for months, and suddenly the plan says "run less." Every runner's instinct screams "do more." But the science is clear: runners who stick to their taper perform better.
So the plan builds the taper for you — a progressive volume cut scaled to your race. And when life forces a reshuffle, redistribution always skips taper weeks, so the miles you drop earlier never get pushed back into them.
Bosquet et al. (2007) found that 41–60% volume reduction over 2 weeks is optimal. Runners who stick to their taper finish approximately 2.6% faster.
Bosquet et al. (2007) meta-analysis
Source: Bosquet et al. (2007)
Your Pace Target Changes When the Weather Does
Running a 5:30/km pace at 15°C is not the same effort as running it at 32°C. Your body works harder in the heat — and your pace targets should reflect that. The app checks the weather before every outdoor run and adjusts targets automatically.
- Pace adjusted ~1.5 sec/km per °C above 15°C
- Humidity scaling on top of temperature adjustment
- Weather snapshot on daily calendar view
- Clear messaging: "Pace adjusted for 32°C heat — your effort is the same"
Source: Established heat performance models
Built on Research,
Not Bro Science
Every algorithm traces back to published research, peer-reviewed studies, or established coaching methodology. No influencer advice. No forum wisdom.
- Mileage Progression
- Adaptive model based on Aarhus University (2012) findings and Jack Daniels' equilibrium method — not the outdated 10% rule.
- Injury Prevention
- Single-session spike guard derived from a 2025 BJSM cohort (n=5,200). ACWR monitoring for proactive risk scoring before symptoms appear.
- Taper Science
- Bosquet et al. (2007) meta-analysis — 41–60% volume reduction over 2 weeks yields ~2.6% faster race times.
- Polarized Training
- Dr. Stephen Seiler's 80/20 research, confirmed by a 2024 PMC meta-analysis. 3-zone model with automated gray zone detection.
- Periodization
- Base → Build → Peak → Taper → Recovery structure drawn from Hal Higdon, BAA, and modern marathon coaching consensus.
- Beginner Progression
- Jeff Galloway's run/walk method (98% finish rate). C25K dropout analysis informing our 50% max continuous run increase cap per week.
- Recovery Science
- Age-specific recovery windows calibrated to physiology. PEACE & LOVE protocols for acute injury management.
- Weather Adjustments
- ~1.5 sec/km per °C above 15°C with humidity scaling, drawn from established heat performance models.
What the plan tracks
90%
The completion target. Because life happens — and 90% is still exceptional.
- Distance
- Longest Run
- Streak
- Adjustments
- Holidays
Quietly, in the background. Not to grade you — to celebrate how far you've come.
Works With What You Already Use
Sync your plan to where your life already lives. Import your running history from Strava or Garmin, so your plan starts from where you actually are.
Import From
Sync To
Log With
Built for an Agentic Future
Your plan isn't trapped in an app. It's open, structured data an AI assistant can read and act on — so you can just ask. "What's my run today?" "Log my 6-miler, felt easy." Your coach, in whatever assistant you already use.
Your Schedule. Your Pace. Your Plan.
A training plan that works around your life — from your first 5K to your fastest marathon.
100% free. Research-backed. No guilt.