How to recover in the week after your sub-3 marathon

The medal’s hung up, your result is locked in and the adrenaline has finally worn off (and you've followed best practice on what to do in the first 24 hours post-marathon). What now?

The week after a marathon is a strange, delicate time. Your legs are wrecked, your brain is foggy, and yet you’re also full of memories, lessons and – occasionally – a dangerous urge to race again. The most important thing you can do in this window is resist that urge. The next block will come. Right now, your job is to recover.

Day one: don’t even think about training

The day after the marathon, do nothing. No jog, no spin class, no brisk walk to the train station. I’ve made that mistake – dragging myself to work the next morning, barely able to put one foot in front of the other, struggling up a single flight of stairs, regretting every step. You are physically and emotionally depleted, running on fumes.

You can wear your DOMS like a badge of honour if you like, but don’t try to be a hero. Gentle mobility is fine – the lightest of stretches, a slow walk to the corner shop, maybe a few easy lengths in the pool if you're desperate to move – but avoid anything structured, anything even vaguely resembling training. Let your body crash, and more importantly, give yourself permission to stop chasing goals for a moment.

Also be aware that your immune system takes a hit in the 48 to 72 hours after the marathon. You’re more susceptible to coughs, colds and bugs during this window, so it’s worth being a little cautious. Keep warm, avoid crowded indoor spaces if you can (of course, not always possible if flying back from overseas) and make sure your post-race week doesn’t turn into a post-race illness.

Days two to three: pain, reflection, recalibration

The worst of the soreness usually kicks in around 36–48 hours post-race. This is the real comedown. The excitement of the race fades, and you’re left with a curious kind of void. For weeks, maybe months, you’ve had structure. Purpose. A schedule. Now? Nothing. No plan. No pace. Just aching legs and a slightly disoriented brain.

Use this window for reflection. Write a short log of how the race went – what worked, what you’d change, what you learned. Capture it while it’s fresh and unvarnished. Even if you revise it later with more distance, the raw honesty of this moment is worth documenting. It also gives you something useful to revisit when you next prepare for a race.

If you’re missing a sense of forward momentum, try setting micro-goals. Walk pain-free. Sleep eight hours. Feel your appetite return. These are signs of recovery too – they count as progress, even if they don’t show up in your training log (or add them to your training log, if it helps!)

Thursday onwards: cautious re-entry

For me, Thursday or Friday is the tipping point. That first test run – slow, stiff, robotic, like a tin man – usually happens around then. It’s more ceremonial than anything else. I’ll often wear my finisher’s shirt, not out of vanity, but out of quiet pride. I’m still aching, still recovering, but I’m back out there. Just about.

By Saturday, I start to feel normal again. Which is precisely when I need to be careful. The temptation to jog down to parkrun and “see how I go” is strong. But I’ve learned (and am still learning) that racing – or even pushing too hard – at this point can undo all the recovery work and set you back. Just because you can run doesn’t mean you should.

If you want to gauge how your body is really doing, monitor effort by heart rate, not pace. What felt like a gentle jog pre-marathon might now put you near threshold. Go by feel, but also keep an eye on the data. It can be a useful reality check.

Nutrition: discipline with a few earned indulgences

The key recovery macro is protein. Lots of it. Not just shakes – I aim for fish, chicken, even the occasional steak (helpful for iron too), with leafy greens and some complex carbs. I still hit my target of 1.2 to 2 grams of protein per kilo of body weight, and I do it every day without fail.

But as the training load drops, so must the calorie intake. By midweek, I start to pay attention. It’s easy to keep eating like you’re running 100km a week, especially if you’ve been looking forward to comfort food. And you should enjoy a treat or two – if ever you’ve earned one, it’s now. But don’t let “treat week” turn into “slide month.” Your body needs care, not complacency.

Sleep, swimming, and letting go of guilt

Marathon training often robs you of sleep. Now’s the time to reclaim it. Sleep in. Nap. Go to bed early. If you wake up and still feel tired, go back to sleep. Your body isn’t just sore – it’s chemically out of balance, and you need the deep cellular repair that only proper rest can provide. A magnesium supplement before bed can help too – it’s not magic, but many runners find it improves sleep quality during this recovery window.

Swimming can also help bridge the gap. It’s low impact, great for circulation (thank you, hydrostatic pressure), and lets you keep moving without battering your legs. Even a few lengths of easy breaststroke or backstroke can make a difference. You’re not training – you’re recovering through movement.

Most of all, don’t feel guilty. Have some books lined up. Get stuck into a work project. Focus on family or travel. You can’t train right now – not properly – so fill the space with something else meaningful. This isn’t time wasted; it’s time repurposed.

If you’re sensitive to caffeine, be aware that your body might respond differently than usual in the days after a marathon. That second or third coffee might suddenly affect your sleep or digestion more than you’d expect. You can always reintroduce it later – but for now, tread lightly.

A final note on restraint

I’ve known plenty of runners who, within days of missing their A-goal, fork out for another marathon. They try to fix things by rushing back into a new block. Most don’t make it to the start line. Their bodies rebel. Niggles turn into injuries. The plan unravels before it even begins.

You won’t lose fitness in a week or two. But you can sabotage your gains by rushing back. Think of recovery as part of training – not an interruption, but the essential closing chapter of your block. Honour it, and you’ll carry more of that hard-won fitness into the next one.

Your next peak will come. This week isn’t about chasing it. It’s about absorbing what you’ve already done, giving your body and mind a full chance to process it all before the next challenge calls.