My expertise in post-race recovery is gained solely from Google University, so take my advice with more than a few grains of salt. However, I never struggled while descending to the toilet seat nor did I have to go down the stairs backwards, as I've heard so many other marathoners tell. So maybe something I did worked out in my favor. A look at how I recovered in the 24-hours after the race:
0-15 minutes post-race: walking and refueling
Immediately after crossing the line, I walked through the finishers area, happily accepting a space blanket, Gatorade, and every morsel of food the kind volunteers handed to me (except a banana. I'd had more than enough banana on the course...) and kept moving until I found my fan club on the other side of the barricade. I felt my calves starting to cramp a bit, so I stretched them before sitting on a curb to stuff my face.
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| Remember how badly I wanted to sit on the curb at mile 20?! Sitting on this one post-race was every bit as wonderful as I'd imagined it would be :) |
After sitting for several minutes, I knew I needed to get moving again, especially towards the beer tent! My favorite recovery beverage :) I found that I was walking slowly but steadily as I made my way towards the yeasty, hoppy carbs.
Once I picked up my beer, I sought out a tree for some legs up the wall. I laid by that tree for quite a while, loving the feel of my feet defying gravity. I could have taken a nap there, I'm quite sure... Legs refreshed, I ate a bit more, stretched a lot more, and changed into dry clothes. I felt like a million bucks! Or something like that.
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| My fan club dared me to drink the beer while in this position. Challenge accepted. |
Back at home, after boring my husband with vast minutiae of the race, he set up an ice bath for me. I tentatively dipped a toe into the cold cold tub, debating whether 26.2 miles or an icy tub was a crazier idea. But I plunged in anyway and froze my tired muscles for 21 minutes. To take my mind off my numb lower body, I spent the time checking my e-mail, texts, Facebook messages, and Strava comments. The distractions worked and the time passed (relatively) quickly. I followed the ice bath with the hottest, most amazing shower (a top five shower, for sure; every bit as lovely as a post-birth shower).
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| Freezing the aches away. |
I slipped into my compression socks after the shower and staggered to my bed for a quick nap. I brought water and food with me knowing that I'd wake up famished. After a short but sweet snooze, I snacked a bit before heading out for the family's late-afternoon activities.
5-7 hours post-race: more stretching and walking
I propped myself in a chair for most of the evening, but I did another extended legs up the wall session after dinner and took a stroll with the kids before their bedtime. I knew I should walk to stretch out the legs a bit more, but mostly I did it because I nearly had 50,000 steps for the day on my Fitbit. I couldn't be that close to a milestone number and not hit it...
18 hours post-race: foam rolling, stretching, and walking
I slept better than I expected that night but woke up with a very stiff and angry left knee. Walking the kids to school wasn't pretty, so I did some serious stretching and foam rolling when I got back home. To keep it loose, I strolled around the neighborhood with the Little Lady, and her short 2-year-old legs kept the perfect pace for me; I couldn't have walked any faster if I tried. But the walk helped loosen things up, and the incredible stiffness never returned.
What recovery strategies do you employ after a big race? Which do you think is crazier: running 26.2 miles or taking an ice bath?
