First of all, congratulations! Running a marathon is truly an incredible feat. But no matter how rigorous your training regimen is, running 26.2 miles has a huge impact on your body.
While running, glycogen (or sugar) levels decrease, cortisol (or stress hormone) levels increase, blood flow increases, and your muscles undergo constant microtrauma.
Your body will gradually repair itself in the days and weeks after the big event, but this imbalance makes you more prone to injury. Fortunately, this guide offers basic recovery tips to follow after your marathon to ensure optimal healing.
Replenish your nutrients
Running a 26.2 mile race is an extreme test of endurance. After the marathon, it is essential to replace these lost nutrients with a well-balanced meal so that your body can heal properly.
The best foods to eat after a marathon include:
- Carbohydrates – You may be familiar with carb-loading before a race to improve your athletic performance, but carb-loading After is equally beneficial. Carbohydrates are essential for restoring glycogen levels and rebuilding your muscle proteins.
- Protein – Like carbohydrates, protein helps repair your muscles and is vital for recovery. Eating protein after a run also helps relieve fatigue and muscle soreness. For best results, you’ll want a mix of carbs and protein like milk, peanut butter bagels, and chicken with rice or pasta.
- Salty foods – Salt helps restore the electrolytes you lose during sweating. Some savory post-race snack options are pretzels, trail mix, jerky, and pickles.
- Supplements – While a balanced diet will help you meet your nutritional needs, vitamin supplements such as glutamine, omega-3, magnesium and vitamin D are an effective alternative to replenishing your nutrients. You can also find these vitamins in fruits such as bananas, oranges and berries.
Running speeds up digestion by increasing blood flow, so it’s best to eat within 30 minutes of running for optimal nutrient absorption.
Hydrate
You lose a lot of fluids when you run. After your race, remember to hydrate with 16 to 24 ounces of fluid for every pound of body weight lost during exercise. You can do this by drinking water or by taking a sports drink that is full of electrolytes.
Remember not to drink very too much water at once, as this can flush out your electrolytes. The goal is to maintain a fluid balance that can relieve muscle pain and help deliver nutrients throughout your body.
Passive Recovery
After you finish your workout, it’s important to take it easy and give your muscles time to heal to avoid the risk of injury. To that end, try these passive rehabilitation techniques that incorporate gentle, therapeutic movements.
Stretch
Stretching is one of the most effective ways to soothe sore muscles and maximize post-marathon recovery, but static stretching can be too strenuous on inflamed muscles after a race.
Instead, do low-impact dynamic stretches to minimize injury. Additionally, wait a few hours to give your muscles time to hydrate and recover before starting static stretches and foam rolling.
Massage
The days after the marathon are the best time to massage those sore muscles. Massages are beneficial for your well-being as they increase circulation and flush lactic acid and waste from your muscles, thus relieving soreness.
Immersion in cold water
Immersion in cold water, such as ice baths or cold showers, has similar benefits to stretching and massage: it helps flush out lactic acid, increases circulation, and helps deliver nutrients to the muscles.
These effects help reduce muscle soreness and relieve delayed muscle soreness.
Sleep
After your race, sleep may be the only thing on your mind. Fortunately for you, sleep is a necessary factor in muscle recovery after exercise.
Sleep regulates hormones that help with muscle recovery and growth. Quality sleep can also speed up the healing process by replenishing your energy-restoring glycogen stores.
Set new goals
When you’ve put months of rigorous training and energy into a big day, you can feel let down once it’s over. In fact, post-race blues are a common experience among runners. But, luckily, there are ways to get around it:
- Take a break – Take 5 to 7 days off from running. By implementing a recovery period and allowing your body to heal, you are taking care of your body to ensure that you can continue training in the future.
- Return to running slowly – It’s tempting to jump back into the training you’re used to, but this can lead to injury. After your days off, start with short, easy runs.
- Set new goals – Set new goals to keep yourself motivated, such as pursuing future races or taking up a new hobby.
And of course, don’t forget to celebrate your incredible achievement.
Keep running with Chuze Fitness
Running a marathon is a true test of endurance that requires a lot of rest and recovery. As your body heals from the microtraumas of intense exercise, you can help it by replenishing your nutrients, hydrating, and implementing passive recovery strategies.
Plus, you can facilitate long-term running success and get back to running safely with Chuze Fitness. We believe gyms should be friendly, clean and accessible to everyone, regardless of your experience. So whether you’re running marathons or just starting out, you can start a supportive fitness journey by joining the Chuze Fitness family today.
Sources:
National Library of Medicine. Marathon training and immune function.
Nutri Advanced. Best Supplements for Marathon Runners.
The runner’s world. What Causes DOMS and What Can You Do to Ease It?
Review by:
Ani is the VP of Fitness at Chuze Fitness and oversees the group fitness and group training departments. He has had a 25+ year career in club management, personal training, group exercise and instructor training. Annie lives with her husband and son in San Diego, California and loves hot yoga, snowboarding and all things wellness.
