How to Recover From a Marathon in Record Time

How to Recover From a Marathon

Glug, glug. Credit: mbettik

5. Hydrate and sleep. Also obvious but very important: drink plenty of water to re-hydrate and flush out your system, and get lots of sleep — these are the building blocks of muscle repair. If possible, try for an extra hour of sleep compared to your usual “well-rested” night (e.g., if you normally sleep 7.5 hours, go for 8.5 instead). Ninety-nine percent of the time, my feet hurt after a marathon … but that completely goes away after just one night of good sleep, and I’m left with just a few areas of muscle soreness (this time, my quads). Pay very close attention to what still hurts the morning after a marathon — those are the muscles you need to stretch a lot now, and strengthen the next time around. (Hopefully by now you’ve forgotten the pain and have decided that there will be a next marathon!)