Training

mayo clinic

Taking Care of Your Body After a Race

by the Mayo Clinic

What is the best way to recover after a marathon?  Recovering from a marathon is a multi-step process:

Step 1: Initially, your goal is to rehydrate, cool down if you are feeling overheated, or warm up if you are feeling chilled. A gentle stretch within 5-10 minutes of finishing may help to reduce muscle pain later.

Step 2: Replace some of the calories you expended. Try to take in mostly easily digestible carbohydrates and avoid alcohol in large quantities. Contrary to popular belief, alcohol is not carbohydrate and is metabolized to triglycerides, or fat, rather than sugar. 

Step 3: It's important not to beat up your joints or running muscles until they have had at least two-three days to heal, or perhaps longer if you are a novice marathoner. Many injuries occur when people try to resume training on stiff, sore muscles, or alter their running mechanics because of inflamed tendons or joints or blistered feet. Gentle stretching and low impact aerobic exercise such as easy paced cycling or swimming may be well tolerated and can actually speed up recovery. Full recovery may take as long as two-three weeks after an intense, competitive marathon race.