This past Sunday I ran my 6th marathon-the Colorado Colfax Marathon. In the days following the race, as I try and take it easy to recover, I analyze my performance; what went well, what didn’t, what foods I should and shouldn’t eat, if I should change the way I hydrate. Usually though, I think about how I can improve for next time. I focus on how I’ll tweak my training for the next marathon. I usually pick my next marathon within 48 hours after crossing the finish line. I start brainstorming right away and I often neglect what is arguably the most important aspect of marathon training: recovery.
I think most people know that marathon training requires extreme dedication and months of difficult training. What a lot of people don’t realize though, is that your training shouldn’t end when you cross the finish line. Completing a marathon, no matter your finish time, is a tremendous achievement and should be treated as such. You demanded a lot from your body to complete these 26.2 miles, and the finish line has come at a cost. After the finish you are most likely dehydrated, exhausted, hypothermic, glycogen depleted, nauseous, or any number of things. Your post marathon recovery should be just as carefully planned as the training leading up to race day. The recovery process can essentially be broken down into three different categories, each equally important to fully recover your body.
· Immediately after finishing: The most important thing you can do here is to get calories in you. Even in the finisher’s chute, you should be trying to eat something. Grab as many bananas, bagels, pretzels etc that you can as they hand them out. It is not uncommon to feel nauseous or not have an appetite after a marathon. If this is the case, try some liquid calories like Gatorade or chocolate milk, anything you feel you can keep down. Bottom line is, you’ve depleted your energy stores and they need to be replenished. Beginning the process of rehydration is also very important and should begin right after you finish. Take small sips of water as your stomach won’t be able to handle high volumes. If you can, it’s good to bring a change of clothes with you. Getting out of your running clothes as soon as you can after finishing will help keep you warm and reduce your risk of getting the cold or flu. The stress of completing the 26.2 mile distance severely suppresses the immune system and drastically increases your risk of illness.
· Within 24 hours of finishing: Proper diet, hydration and sleep are focus points here. The first 24 hours after finishing a marathon is the time in which you can ice your muscles. An ice bath (if you can handle it) for 5 to 10 minutes will work to reduce the swelling in your overworked muscles. Gentle stretching or very light massaging can help alleviate muscle soreness. Taking anti-inflammatory medications like Tylenol or Ibuprofen can also help with the swelling. After 24 hours, you can switch to heat compresses and soaks in the hot tub if you’d like.
· Weeks after the finish: Experts say that you need one day of recovery for every mile completed, so you’d need to allow 26 days to recover from the marathon. This doesn’t mean you need to wait for 26 days before you can exercise or run at all. This simply means you should not workout to the extent or intensity you did pre-marathon. People react differently to the stress and demand of the marathon, therefore, there isn’t just one recovery plan that suits everyone. This phase may last until the week or two after your marathon, or it may last a month or more. If you’ve sustained a serious injury you will obviously spend longer in this phase. Absolutely NO running should take place until injured areas are no longer causing you pain. Why add even more stress to already over-trained muscles? If you are lucky enough to have crossed the finish line with no significant injuries, you should give yourself those 26 days of recovery before you do any serious running again(example: no intense speed drills, hill repeats or long runs). Jumping back into training too hard too fast will cause injury and burn out as well as decrease your performance.
Runners may experience “post marathon blues” at any point in the recovery process and experience some depression. This can be caused by a few different things. Usually (as is the case with me) it’s simply because you physically can’t do the type and intensity of workouts you have become accustomed to in the pre-marathon training. It is important to understand that the recovery phase is equally important and beneficial to the body. Remember, just as everyone responds differently to exercise, people respond differently to recovery as well. Listen to your body and don’t push it beyond its limit.
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