Feeling sore and tired? You're in good company. Lots of half and full marathons took place this weekend. Congrats if you completed one! Here are a few tips to aid your recovery.
Use ice. If you can tolerate it, taking an ice bath within a few hours, or even the next day, can help reduce inflammation and speed up your recovery. If you just can't do an ice bath, use ice packs on especially sore spots, such as your quads and knees.
Eat healthy. Stick to a balanced diet with plenty of good carbohydrates and protein to help repair and rebuild those damaged muscles.
Get plenty of sleep. Sleep is crucial for the recovery process. Listen to your body and don't feel guilty about sleeping a lot -- it's normal.
Give yourself enough rest time. The general rule is that you should take a day of rest for every mile raced. Rest doesn't mean you can't run or workout. Just stick to shorter, easy runs or cross training. Your body will still be recovering, and running too hard or too many miles could increase your chance of injury.
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Really good tips, I’m preparing for the marathon and some of this knowledge can surely be used!
I’ve also been using http://www.fromthecouchto5k.com, very good too!
Happy Running, Carrol