Marathon Recovery

Recovery is seen as the most important part of the event by many professionals; it will determine how quickly you can train again, race again, or even move without being stiff again.

After a marathon, the whole of your legs’ muscles have been pushed to the edge, and small microscopic tears occur in the muscle fibres. This can cause soreness and in some cases extreme pain. Sadly, this is extremely hard to prevent; but there are a lot of conditions that can, and need to be prevented after an endurance event.

When you finish, you have a 15 minute window to replenish some energy and your electrolytes (mineral salts). Ideally, an energy gel should be consumed after 5 minutes of finishing, and an electrolyte sports drink straight away. This will help to some extent to replace muscle glycogen stores and salt levels in the blood.

Stretching is possibly the best thing to stop muscle stiffness. Although your muscles will be sore, stretching them will help to prevent stiffness in your legs, shoulders and abdomen. It’s a good idea to stretch your calves, hamstrings, quadriceps, buttocks, abdomen and shoulders.

The immune system can be running at a sub-normal level for a short period of time after the race, so supplements of Vitamin C can reduce the chances of a sinus infection. The best way to consume Vitamin C is through citrus fruits such as limes and oranges, as a supplement isn’t absorbed as readily through the mouth as fruit.