Middle-distance & Marathon

Martin Karoki Muriuki

Professional runner · Nyahururu, Rift Valley, Kenya

High-discipline coaching for middle-distance and marathon runners

Languages: Swahili, English, Korean

About

Martin Karoki Muriuki is a professional Kenyan runner and coach shaped by one of the world's most respected distance-running environments. He describes his coaching as top class, driven by the desire to achieve world-class honors and medals through his runners. He transitions into coaching to mentor upcoming athletes and draw on his years of personal experience in the sport.

Coaching Style

He demands determination, self-drive, and a high level of discipline, while maintaining a close, friendly dynamic with athletes. His approach combines Kenyan and international methods, applying the 75/25 rule for middle-distance runners. He prescribes high weekly volumes of 120-160km for middle-distance athletes, split into twice-daily runs (mornings on dirt roads, evenings on grass). In the first few weeks, Martin uses GPS data to establish each athlete's effort zones. After that, training transitions to perceived effort (easy, moderate, hard). This calibration phase prevents athletes from running their easy days too fast, a common cause of overtraining and injury. He also builds mental resilience using local Swahili proverbs like 'Mtaka cha mvunguni sharti ainame' (roughly: 'he who wants something must stoop to get it').

Training guides authored by Martin

Want a feel for how Martin builds the back end of a marathon block? The two phase guides below walk through the volume drops and the calm discipline he uses with his Kenyan athletes in the final weeks before race day.

Three-week marathon taper plan: Week-by-week structure for the three weeks before race day, written from Martin's own training and coaching practice.
Seven-day race-week prep guide: Day-by-day plan for the final week before a marathon: workouts, fueling, sleep, and the calm execution that protects the build.

Coaching paths Martin works best on

Martin's calibration-first approach scales across recreational marathoners and serious time-goal chasers. The three paths below match the fit profiles he describes when he takes on new athletes.

First-marathon coaching: Martin's strongest fit. Disciplined progression, easy days that stay easy, and the patience to let a first-marathon build settle without panic.
Sub-3 marathon coaching: For runners moving from middle-distance toward serious marathon goals. Martin's 14:13 5K background brings the speed; the marathon coaching brings the structure.
Boston Qualifier coaching: A BQ is earned in disciplined weeks, not hero workouts. Martin's repeatable-week structure fits the BQ standard better than chasing one big breakthrough.