How Long to Recover After a Marathon and When to Return to Running

You’ve crossed the finish line, collected your medal, and celebrated a goal that once demanded months of early mornings and long runs. Now comes the less glamorous part of the marathon: recovery.You might be eager to get back on the road—or perfectly happy to take a break. Either way, the days and weeks after a marathon deserve as much thought as the training that got you to the starting line in the first place.Here’s how to decide how long to rest, recognize when you’re ready to return, and ease back into training so you can build toward your next goal feeling strong.How to Determine How Long to Rest After a MarathonExactly when you return to running after a marathon depends on how the race went, your overall effort during it, and how you feel. Some experts recommend one day of recovery time for every mile raced—so 26 days of rest for marathoners. And some even recommend one day of rest for each kilometer raced, which would mean 42 days of recovery.Don’t panic, though! The good news is that “rest” does not have to mean no running at all (though it can). It just means taking a break from high-intensity training such as speedwork or other races.Remember, running a race at a submaximal effort is different than racing it at a high effort. But either way, there’s no exact formula to follow for recovery after a marathon, so the best guide is really tuning in and listening to your body.At a minimum, take three to seven days completely off from running after a marathon. Sleep in, eat, and enjoy your accomplishment. After that, begin an active recovery program. Active recovery includes light exercise and can include some running, if you are not sore and feel mentally and physically ready to get back to it.More specifically, “light” exercise means exercising at a low-intensity level, i.e., no more than 60 to 65 percent of your max heart rate for a relatively short duration, like less than 60 minutes. Activity actually helps you recover faster than inactivity because it promotes circulation. And good circulation delivers fresh oxygen and nutrients to muscles and carries away metabolic waste and, therefore, aids healing and recovery.If you do want to clock miles, focus on recovery runs during this time—keeping the effort light and easy, meaning you should be able to have a conversation the entire time you’re running.Signs You’re Recovering From Your Marathon Your body will let you know when it wants to run again, and one message it will send is through soreness. Minimal soreness is a good sign because it means your body is recovering from the challenge, but it may take a few days to kick in.Delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) typically follows most marathon efforts. The soreness results from microscopic muscle tissue damage, and the severity of it depends on your fitness level and the intensity of the effort relative to the training effort. The degree of soreness indicates the extent of muscle damage, and this will influence the duration of your recovery period.In other words, the more soreness, the longer the recovery. (A lack of soreness indicates you were well prepared for the demands of your race, so good job with your training.) When the soreness subsides, that’s an indicator that you’re ready for action again.You could also monitor your resting heart rate (RHR) for an objective assessment of your recovery process or your heart rate variability (HRV), which many fitness trackers take into account when determining your “readiness” to exercise. When your heart returns to its normal pre-marathon resting heart rate, and/or your HRV stabilizes, you are ready to begin running again.What to Do Before You Get Back to RunningWalking, riding a bike, stretching, or swimming for 30 to 60 minutes at low intensity will promote circulation and assist your recovery. Massage therapy and foam rolling can also help relieve muscle soreness and assist recovery by increasing the body’s circulation.Avoid a hot bath or the hot tub for 48 hours after the race. Cool water baths with some ice can help minimize soft tissue inflammation, though, during the first 48 hours postrace.To make it more bearable, fill the tub with water and hop in. Then, slowly add ice to the water to minimize the cold shock factor. You can wear a sweatshirt and sip on a hot drink while you cool down your legs.After your ice bath, plan on lying down with your feet elevated (legs up on a wall is a good pose for recovery). You can do this regularly during the few weeks after your marathon, too.How to Return to Running After a MarathonWhen you’re ready to lace up your shoes, return to running with some easy-paced, short runs when muscle soreness has disappeared.One training option is to follow your taper plan in reverse to rebuild your mileage (this is known as reverse tapering). For example, your first weekday runs would be in the three- to six-mile range. The first long run on the weekend would be around six miles, and the following weekend would clock in at eight to 10 miles. You’d then do a 10- to 14-mile run the weekend after that, depending on your training plan. Future mileage will depend on how you feel and your future running goals.As you return to running, be aware of your breathing and heart rate while on the move. If your heart rate spikes up, or your breathing sounds like a locomotive, you know you are still recovering from the marathon. These are signs of fatigue, so take it easy until your exercise heart rate and breathing rate also return to their normal ranges.The recovery period is a good time to decide what you want to do next. Dreaming of your next race and medal is a great way to spend your downtime!GET A FULL REVERSE TAPER PLAN HERESusan Paul has coached more than 2,000 runners and is an exercise physiologist and program director for the Orlando Track Shack Foundation. For more information, visit www.trackshack.com.