A few key things you do shortly after finishing your half marathon will make a difference in how sore and stiff you’ll feel the days after your race.
So what should you do post half marathon and when?
In this post, we’ll go through:
- A post-half marathon recovery plan
- The post-half marathon recovery food to eat
- And the post-half recovery tips that will take you through the rest of the day
(There’s also a post-half marathon recovery timeline to grab at the end of this post, so don’t miss it!)
Let’s get started.
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THE POST HALF MARATHON RECOVERY TIPS YOU NEED TO KNOW
Immediately after crossing the finish line
Once you’ve crossed the finish line, keep walking. You’ll probably do a small amount of walking as you move away from the finish line and pick up your gear bag.
But after that, keep walking for a few more minutes to gradually return your body temperature to normal and prepare your body for recovery.
Change into dry clothes (if you can)
You’ll probably be much warmer if you can swap your sweaty clothes for a warm, dry outfit.
But since that’s not always possible, the main goal here is to get comfortable and speed up your recovery.
And you can do this in two ways—with recovery sandals and compression socks.
- Recovery sandals, usually made with soft foam, can take pressure off of your feet and legs.
- Compression socks apply graduated pressure from the foot (where it will be the tightest) through your calf to improve blood flow and may reduce muscle soreness.
Post half marathon recovery food | Eat and drink your carbs 1, 2
You probably ate a lot of carb-heavy foods throughout half marathon training, and that doesn’t stop now.
You’ll need to refuel your muscles with carbs—through fluids, food, or a combination of both.
After running 13.1 miles, it may be easier for you and your stomach to refuel with fluids instead of food.
But everyone’s needs are different so let’s talk about post-race drinks and post-half marathon recovery food.
Post half marathon recovery drinks. You will need to take on fluids lost during your half marathon—water and electrolytes to restore hydration and carbohydrates to replenish glycogen stores.
After your race, drink 1.5–2 cups (or 12–16 fluid ounces) of a 6–8% carbohydrate solution (that’s 6 to 8 g carbohydrate per 100 mL of fluid) to replace fluid and sustain blood glucose levels.
So if you’re looking at nutrition facts of a drink, look for:
12 fl ounces = about 24 grams of carbs
16 fl ounces = about 32 grams of carbs
(Chocolate milk is a good option if it fits your diet and preferences.)
Once you’ve taken on some carbs, you have more recovery drinks for runners to consider.
Post half marathon recovery food. Look for high-carb options that your race may provide (like bagels and bananas). Or throw a snack into your race bag like pretzels and hummus, an energy bar, or a smoothie pouch.
Elevate your legs
After you’ve replenished your fluids and snacks, now is the time to get comfortable, lie down, and elevate your legs.
Lie on your back and prop your legs vertically against the wall to gently stretch your legs and improve circulation.
If extending your legs on the wall isn’t comfortable, you’ve got two more ways to elevate your legs.
- Use a chair. Place your feet and calves on the chair seat, with your knees bent at 90 degrees.
- Or the most comfortable way: use a bed and pillows. Lie in bed and elevate your legs with pillows.
You could hold this post anywhere from 2 minutes to 20 minutes, depending on how comfortable this feels for you.
Take a nap
If you choose to elevate your legs in bed, you may drift off to sleep, and that’s a good thing. A 20-minute nap, if you can squeeze it into your schedule, will give your body time to repair itself.
Eat a post half marathon meal
Your post-half marathon recovery meal might be about 2 hours after you finish your half marathon. And this meal, (like your post-half marathon recovery drink and snack) should be filled with carbohydrates.
But, I wouldn’t get too strict on the grams of carbs in your meal because this is probably a celebratory one, and you should definitely enjoy what you want to eat.
Relax, go for a walk, and get some sleep
Go for a walk to shake out muscle stiffness and get the blood flowing.
Do a few mobility exercises to help your joints move through their natural full range of motion.
Do something that’s relaxing for you so you can drift to sleep. Anytime you can sleep well will help your body and mind recover from running.
What you do after your half marathon can impact how you feel the days after your half marathon.
But you don’t have to miss a step because I’ve created this post-half marathon plan for you to follow, so be sure to grab it now.
