How long to recover after a half marathon? Learn how to recover properly after a half marathon to get back to regular training as fast as possible.
Recovery after a half marathon
Although a half marathon is a relatively long distance, you can quickly return to regular training with proper and sufficient recovery. Through rest and recovery training, you can get back to normal activity as soon as possible and minimize the risk of injury.
Recovery days after a half marathon
How many days of complete rest you should have after a half marathon can vary, depending on how challenging the race was. It would be best to take it easy the days after a half marathon. It would help if you gave your muscles, tendons, and joints time to start the recovery process. You must have a balanced diet, which provides you with adequate protein, carbohydrates, and healthy fats. These are critical components that help speed up recovery after a half marathon.
If you run a half marathon for the first time, you may need to take a few extra rest days, perhaps as much as 5-7 days. Listen to your body to determine how much rest you need after a half marathon.
Exercise after running a half marathon
You can resume easy recovery training when you have had a few rest days, where you have not run but perhaps taken some easy walks to loosen up the muscles. Recovery training is very low intensity, so low that you do not interrupt the ongoing recovery process. These workouts should be short, and you must look at this as recovery, not exercise. The goal of these training sessions is to recover from the strain of running a half marathon. Complete 2-3 recovery training sessions, preferably with a rest day between each training session.
How to resume regular exercise
Reduce how much you exercise with moderate to hard intensity. When you are ready to resume regular training again, usually after 7-10 days, you run with lower intensity than before you started downsizing in the period before the half marathon. Even if you have completed a recovery period where you have allowed the body to recover, it is still essential that you gradually increase the amount of exercise and intensity.
Decrease how much you exercise with moderate to hard intensity after the half marathon. You may need to reduce the total exercise distance by 30-40 percent. Perform the same varied training as before the half marathon, but do less. Higher intensity training should, as always, be done progressively by gradually increasing the intensity throughout the workout, which will help the body slowly get used to the increased load and help reduce the risk of injury.
Recovery after the half marathon
How you recover after the half marathon will affect how fast you recover after the race. How you recover after a half marathon can also be crucial in reducing the risk of injury. Starting challenging exercise shortly after a half marathon can dramatically increase the risk of injury. Listen to your body and decide how much rest you need in the days after the half marathon. It is crucial to gradually get used to the intensity and how much you run when starting regular exercise again.
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