Fitness advice: the best ways to recover from a run

I follow a lot of incredible runners on Instagram, Twitter, and even Strava, and it is very easy to get disillusioned with ideas of what the body should be capable of when comparing yourself to them. Since completing my first 50-mile run four weeks ago, it has astounded me how long I have felt fatigued. I have now got my ‘oomph’ back but it took the best part of three weeks.

On the flip side I could feel my body recovering each day, and each morning I felt better than the day and week before. It is just about being realistic and listening to my body. A lot of those incredible runners on Instagram and Twitter have been running for a long time, their bodies are more used to the pressure applied on it and have got better at recovering in a shorter space of time. My body is not there yet, but it is getting there; I am definitely in a better place than after my 50km last year.

I have discovered a few things along the way; over the past 4 weeks I have tried a few different things and here is what I have discovered works and doesn’t work for me. As always, everyone is different and therefore you might find your body reacts and recovers very differently.

Immediate remedies

When I first finished the race the most important things for me to do were – sleep, Epsom salt bath, and good protein. These all helped to ease the stiffness, ache, and pain that comes straight after a race like this.

Sleep – as fatigued as I have felt, including days where I could have physically fallen asleep at my desk mid-afternoon, I have also struggled to get to bed early like I usually do during peak training periods. This, in turn, made getting up early to try to return to my usual routine harder. Therefore for the first couple of weeks, I gave into this and slept in later in the mornings then as the fatigue dispersed I have weened myself back into my old routine (bed at 9:30pm and up at 5:30am).

Food – when you have done a massive race it is very easy to eat everything and anything afterwards and use the race as a reason for it. While this is ok for the first 48 hours, after pizza, pizza and pizza, my body craved other food. Real food. Being healthy and clever with what I am eating has definitely helped, and I have noticed during these weeks when I haven’t been so structured or healthy my body felt ten times worse and I could almost feel the recovery slowing down.

Training – as desperate as I was to get back into training, taking a break is crucial. I tried running a couple of times in the first 7 days and my body just dragged and I felt pretty lousy after. I continued to head out regularly to keep things ticking over but the key for me here was to have no expectation as to how far or fast I would go each time I headed out the door, instead I just went and listened to my body and enjoyed being outside and moving.

Hydration – I don’t drink much and didn’t drink at all in the lead up to the race, but since finishing the race I decided to let my hair down and if I wanted a drink, I’d have one. Whether it is because my body just isn’t used to alcohol anymore or something else, this seemed to slow recovery down for me. I felt significantly worse the day after drinking anything, even a glass of wine with dinner.

Mentality – emotionally I went through a lot post-race. It might sound crazy but it is a bit of an emotional rollercoaster. After the initial high of completing the race and buzz over the first few days telling everyone about it, you realise life quickly resumes and the memories of that day take a backseat. Now I can honestly say I still think about the race pretty much every day with real happiness but other things now take priority. This can at times get you down, but for me, the important thing is to have something else to look forward to and enjoy the memories as often as I have time. I love telling new people about my race and reliving all the best bits all over again!

Foam rolling – one thing I can honestly say I SHOULD have done more of over the last 4 weeks is foam rolling. I am currently stiff as a board compared to just before the race. I’m still doing yoga but my lack of foam rolling (mainly due to it hurting so much!) has definitely had a negative impact on my recovery and flexibility. I am now doing more but I know it would have been better 3 weeks ago!

So remember, whether you have just done your first 5km, marathon, 50km or 50 mile-er, your body will need to recover and there is no science for how long this will take! Listen to your body and react, and rest, accordingly. 

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