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Coaching Tips: Post-Marathon Recovery

  • Writer: Taylor Sayles
    Taylor Sayles
  • Apr 22
  • 2 min read
Person with hands on knees after a hard workout.

You just finished a marathon. You've celebrated the miles, the finish line, posted the #medalmonday Instagram post, and started the race recap. And now you're asking yourself, what's next?


My first hard and fast rule about returning to running after a marathon is: Don't rush back.


If you want to build a long-term relationship with running, rushing back to running or starting a new training block too quickly can easily burn you out. My recommendation is don't return to running until you miss it, or until you actually want to run. Not "feeling guilty I'm not running." Actually, actively WANT to run. Keep in mind that each marathon recovery might be different. So just because you felt like running after a week after the last marathon you finished, doesn't mean that will be the case after every race.


My second tip: You will be very tempted to immediately go comatose after your marathon. Feet up, everyone bringing things to you - what could be better after battering out 26 miles? But don't fall for it. It is so important that you keep moving! This will help you recover faster and feel less sore and stiff in the 24-48 hours after your race.


You may be tempted not to eat anything after you finish too. After that many gels, you may not want to put anything else in your body. But for your recovery, it's super important to prioritize fluids and protein in the first 30 minutes after your race to make recovery feel less painful.


There are a million ways to recover after a marathon, but these three tips have really helped me when recovering from my races.


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Listen to the full mini episode: Tips on Post-Marathon Recovery


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Follow along with the show:

👣 Personal IG/TikTok: @tay.says / @taysays

🎙️ Podcast IG/TikTok: @myfirstmarathonpod

📺 YouTube: @MyFirstMarathonPodcast


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