• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • New? Start Here!

RunToTheFinish

Online Running Coach for All Paces, All Ages

  • Training
    • Beginner Half Marathon Training
    • Sub Two Half Marathon Training
    • Marathon Training
    • New Runner Tips
    • Low Heart Rate Training
    • Group Run Coaching
    • Nutrition for Runners
  • Running Injuries
  • Gear Reviews
  • Work Together
    • Virtual Run Club
    • 1-1 Coaching
    • Brand Partnerships
  • Courses
    • Book
    • IT Band Solution
    • LHR Training Plans
  • Blog

Half Marathon Recovery Plan: When to Run? What to Do?

119shares

When can I run again? It’s often the first thing my athletes ask post race as they notice that for the next few weeks there isn’t a single run on the training plan. And yet half marathon recovery is part of a good training plan!

The answer of course depends on a lot of variables:

  • How hard did you run this race?
  • Have you been dealing with any injuries?
  • How long have you been running?
  • Was this race part of a larger build up to a goal race?

The rule of thumb often thrown around is that you should take off 1 day from running for every 1 mile of the race. For newer runners I think this is largely accurate. The microtears that happen in your muscles might not seem as apparent a few days post race when you’re walking without a shuffle, but the body is still in full on recovery mode.

Without giving your body enough time to recover, the possibility of injury increases exponentially.Plus you’re short changing future races by limiting the bodies growth from the effort.

Instead of those tears getting a chance to heal, they’re being further broken down and putting you in a hole. That leads to changes in your running form, tight muscles or other issues which start to pull the body out of alignment.Half Marathon Recovery Plan

Benefits of Not Running

Why do we need time off after a race? Some people feel like that time off is a reward for all of their hard work leading up to the race, but for me I enjoy that process so the recovery is all about allowing my body to heal. Instead of thinking of it as time wasted, focus on exactly how it’s making you a better runner.

  • Rest days allow your muscles to refuel. You need those glycogen stores to refill, so that you’ll have energy.
  •  Rest days allow your muscles to repair. Repair means the body is going to grow stronger from the effort of your race.
  • Rest days help prevent overtraining. The body has been pushed to it’s limits, which means cortisol is higher as the body responds to this intense stress. Giving this time to stabilize is important.
  • Rest days help prevent injuries from poor form due to fatigue.

I am a proponent of active recovery, which you’ll see in the exactly day by day outline below.

How long should you rest after a half marathon? Not terribly long. In other words, just because you aren’t running doesn’t mean you should create a new dent in the couch.

Your body will actually feel better from some movement to help flush out the build up of lactic acid and prevent the body from getting stiff.

Why to post race recovery is just as important as the rest of your training #running #halfmarathon Click To Tweet

Half Marathon Recovery Plan

The no running question, often leads to a bigger discussion of how not to lose fitness and what to do with the time that you would have spent running. It’s KEY to keep doing something at that time every day, which will help maintain that habit of fitness and make it easier to start running again after the time off.Half Marathon Recovery

Immediately post race:
Hydrate and hit the Epsom salt bath (here’s why no ice baths). Also, when you cross the finish line it can be tempting to find friends and collapse in a heap on the ground. But walking around slow and easy for 30 minutes is really helpful to allow the body to fully cool down.

Sleep is our best recovery tool, but often we have trouble for even a few nights post race because the body has so much adrenaline and cortisol shooting through it. I usually recommend a low dose melatonin, the magnesium drink CALM and that hot bath before bed. Find a routine to help you optimize your sleep for those nights and you will be running again sooner!

One day after:
Get in some movement to loosen up the muscles, consider a massage and enjoy your compression tights (they make exploring a new town more bearable).

Two-Three days:
Keep the movement easy with some walks or restorative yoga. This time is all about recovery and your chance to continue absorbing the race. Great races should be celebrated and the ones that didn’t go as well, turned in to practice races which you can learn from.

Four-Five days:
Add in some light cross training if desired, but this isn’t the time to try CrossFit for the first time. Here is when I start to get back to upper body and core workouts at the gym because I know my legs might need time off, but my arms are ready to go.

This way I’m adding to my injury proof body for when I’m ready to start training again.

Six-Thirteen days:
Let your body be your guide to exercise, but keep the intensity low and try not to run if you can. Give some other muscles a workout! Swim, bike, yoga, Pilates, all of these things can and will benefit your running.

Additionally, the time away from focused running allows you to get back to remembering why you love to run for you and not for a clock.

How do I know When I Can Run Again?

Seasoned runners who have done a lot of half marathons or have done a number of full marathons, will often feel like they can head out for a run within the next few days. Some are absolutely fine with this because it wasn’t a day they pushed for a new personal record, but many realize in the weeks to follow they pushed it too soon.

  • If this was a practice race, a completely fun run or part of the build up to marathon training, then the following week may include a number of easy runs.
  • If this was a goal race, a first half marathon, a huge PR or a really difficult course, ideally you need to give your legs at least a week to recover.
  • If this was a race gone wrong, then it depends on how you handled the day. If you’re injured don’t try to rush the return to running because you’re frustrated. If you backed off and turned it in to an easy run, then again a few weeks of easy running may be just fun.

You will not lose fitness in that time, in fact you GAIN fitness in the recovery process when you don’t short change it!

Looking for your next half marathon plan to get results and stay injury free? Here’s a free printable plan to checkout >>

Example Half Marathon Recovery Plan

Monday: Restorative yoga and a little walk
Tuesday: Walk and more restorative yoga
Wednesday: Walk and upper body weights/core work (if feeling good)
Thursday: Walk and Vinyasa yoga
Friday: Walk or bike and Pilates
Saturday: Walk and yoga
Sunday: Use all my energy to stop myself from running.

Right now is another chance to start developing a few of the other habits that we know benefit our running like meal planning or meditation. Because we have the extra time and are not putting in the miles, nutrition needs to be even more on point to keep us feeling good.

Good food = good mood

Sans endorphins that’s more true that ever! If this down period gives you a chance to develop some other good habits, those will carry over in to the next training cycle.

What does your week look like after a race?

Do you do any pre-planning to keep yourself from overdoing it?

Other ways to connect with Amanda
Instagram Daily Fun: RunToTheFinish

Facebook Community Chatter: RunToTheFinishRunning_motivation_thumb

Sign Up to Receive a Weekly Newsletter with Top Running Tips and Laughs

119shares

Posted by amanda Categories: Half Marathon, recovery, running coach

Primary Sidebar

Filter by Category
  • Select a Category
  • 10 miler
  • 10K
  • 13.1 marathon series
  • 15K
  • 30 Day Challenge
  • 5k
  • About ME
  • Abs
  • Active Travel
  • alaska
  • Amanda Brooks
  • Arizona
  • Asics
  • Austin
  • Baltimore
  • barefoot running
  • beauty
  • Biking
  • birthday
  • bloggers
  • blogging tips
  • body fat
  • body image
  • body weight exercises
  • book reviews
  • Boston Marathon
  • breakfast
  • California
  • Camping
  • Canada
  • Caribbean
  • chicago
  • ChiRunning
  • Clean Eating
  • cold weather training
  • colorado
  • compression
  • Costa Rica
  • Crockpot
  • cross training
  • CrossFit
  • dairy free
  • dessert
  • egg free
  • electrolytes
  • emotional health
  • Europe
  • family
  • Fit Together
  • fitness gear
  • Fitness Tracker
  • fitness vacation
  • florida
  • foam roller
  • food sensitivity
  • Fort Lauderdale
  • France
  • Funny Running
  • Gift Guide
  • Gluten Free
  • GPS Watch
  • Green Smoothie
  • Guides and Tips
  • habits
  • Half Marathon
  • Hawaii
  • HBBC
  • health coach
  • healthy eating
  • Healthy Home
  • Healthy lifestyle
  • Heart Rate Training
  • HIIT workout
  • hiking
  • hiking
  • Hip Strength
  • Hoka One One
  • Holistic Health
  • Hormones
  • hydration
  • Iceland
  • injury
  • inspiration
  • instagram
  • Ireland
  • IT Band
  • IT Band Recovery
  • Jerusalem
  • key west
  • knee injury
  • Kona
  • Love
  • low heart rate training
  • Maffetone
  • main dish
  • Marathon
  • marathon training
  • marriage
  • meal planning
  • Meditation
  • Memphis
  • mental marathon training
  • Mexico
  • Miami
  • Motivation
  • New York City
  • New York City Marathon
  • New York City Marathon Training
  • NYC marathon
  • Oregon
  • Orlando
  • Palm Beach
  • Philadelphia Marathon
  • physical therapy
  • podcasts
  • Prague
  • Product Review
  • Race
  • race costume
  • race medal
  • race photo
  • race report
  • Ragnar
  • Recipe
  • recovery
  • recovery meal
  • relaxation
  • relay race
  • resolution run
  • review
  • Rock N Roll
  • run club
  • Runner's World
  • running accessories
  • running books
  • running coach
  • running form
  • running fuel
  • running gear
  • Running Group
  • running motivation
  • running music
  • Running Shoes
  • safety
  • salads
  • san diego
  • Saucony
  • Seattle
  • skin care
  • Soup
  • South Beach
  • South Carolina
  • South Florida
  • speed work
  • sports nutrition
  • Stand Up Paddle Boarding
  • Steamboat Springs
  • Strength Training
  • stretching
  • sugar reduction
  • Thanksgiving
  • trail running
  • Training Group
  • training plan
  • travel
  • travel running
  • treadmill
  • treadmill workout
  • triathlon
  • ultrarunning
  • vegan
  • Vegas
  • vegatarian
  • vegetable
  • virtual run
  • wedding
  • weight loss
  • winter
  • women's running
  • workout
  • workout motivation
  • workout schedule
  • Yoga

5 Secrets to Improve Your RUn

Start Making Quick Progress on Your Goals (I swear it's easy) no matter your current fitness level. The tips I share with the runners I coach.

Recent Posts

  • Running at Night | Tips and Safety
  • Brooks vs Saucony Running Shoes
  • How to Truly Resolve Runners Knee by Fixing Knee Drift
  • Black Toenails and Lost Toenails from Running
  • A Training Guide for Your First 5K | Top 5 Questions Answered

Must Have Gear

Comparing GPS Watches

Best HR Monitor for Running

Best Foam Rollers

Best Running Books

Running Jackets for Every Condition

fitness partners

Please note that affiliate links {such as Amazon} may pop up on RTTF from time to time. They do not cost you anything to use, but are a huge help to support the ongoing content creation process. Click here to do your shopping!

Welcome!!

Hello runners! I’m Amanda Brooks, a certified personal trainer and running coach. I’ve been coaching over a decade and distance running since 2002. My philosophy is that running isn’t about your pace or the distance or your body. It’s about showing up for yourself, loving the process and doing it injury free!

 

online running coach

Footer

Get the Free 5 Day Better Runner Challenge

Start Making Quick Progress on Your Goals (I swear it's easy)

About Amanda Brooks

Amanda Brooks is a Certified Running Coach, Certified Personal Trainer and long time distance runner with a passion for every facet of running, which leads her to do more reading, research and running than necessary. Find all the tips, tricks and tools you need from this running coach for your best injury free running. Read More…

Popular Posts on RunToTheFinish

  • 17 Funniest Running Memes – Which One’s Do You Relate To?
  • Hoka Vs Brooks Running Shoes
  • Polar Vs Garmin | Comparing GPS Watches
  • Piriformis Syndrome Exercises: Alleviating a Pain in the Butt
  • Best Virtual Races and 11 Reasons You Need to Do One

runtothefinish

Amanda Brooks : Run Coach
GIVEAWAY- 3 WINNERS🥳🥳 Can we talk about runn GIVEAWAY- 3 WINNERS🥳🥳
Can we talk about runners and gut health for a second? And then you'll understand why I love @previnex so much.
//
DID YOU KNOW: There are 500 species and three pounds of bacteria in our gut! 😱😱It’s a living and breathing factory that:

🔵impacts your energy levels and can be reason for joint pain
🟣impacts your mood and focus
🟡can cause runners trots and nausea when micro biome is off
🔴can cause more food sensitivities and intolerances when not balanced with good bacteria
//
So yesssss your gut can make you a better runner when it’s working right and probiotics are a big helper.
//
PRIZES:
Each winner gets a 2 month supply of probiotics and fish oil, the two things I use DAILY and that you’ve emailed me saying “OMG this helped!!”
+
A copy of Run To The Finish on audiobook.
.
Your chance to try a SUPER HIGH QUALITY option and see the impacts. It’s beyond superior to what’s in most stores.
//
HOW TO ENTER:
1️⃣Like and save this photo
2️⃣Follow me and @previnex
3️⃣Tell me what you’re training for

Open to US only. Winners selected Apr 17.

#runningtips #runhappy #trailrunning #guthealthmatters #probiotic #runmehappy #runforlife
☀️MORNING OR ⭐️EVENING RUNNER? Which are y ☀️MORNING OR ⭐️EVENING RUNNER? Which are you?

🐦 early birds let’s hear, what time do you get up??? These times are often 🤯🤯
//
Most of the year I’m up by 5, which often leads to “when do you go to bed?!?!” 
Early 😂.
I’ve been prepping for AARP time since we moved to Miami and it was so dang hot. 

The habit stuck, so now I’m up early and lifting it not heading out immediately in the snow.
//
In my early 20s, I ran after work and then a lot over lunch...even in to marathon training.
👇
Now I have to psych myself up for evenings which is when most groups are!
WHAT ARE YOU AN EXPERT IN? Clearly I talk, read, w WHAT ARE YOU AN EXPERT IN? Clearly I talk, read, write and learn running non-stop. But I still have so many areas I’m working to improve, like trail running!
//
But today I wanna know about you??

🤓What could you easily give a 30 minute presentation on??

😱I’m prepared to be fascinated and learn once again I might need more hobbies.
//
An expert doesn’t mean you know it. ALL, but does mean you have significant experience and knowledge in a topic.
//
I could also talk about blogging 😂dealing with brands and pizza with confidence, but maybe not feel like an expert even with running this business for over a decade.
👇👇
All right, let’s hear it!! Don’t be shy, don’t play down your strengths, own it.
.
.
.
#strongwomenlifteachotherup #runtothefinish #communitylove #urbanrunner #runforgood #denver #streetart #runnerstyle #runnerlove #runnerlife
UPHILL RUNNING TIPS: One of the best ways to get s UPHILL RUNNING TIPS: One of the best ways to get stronger and faster with less injury risk is hill repeats.
.
BUT even picking routes with hills pays off. So a few tips to SAVE AND USE to get the most from them.
//
👁 Eyes: look ahead not down this will keep your chest up and you standing tall

💪Arm swing: swipe to see the upper cut motion that will propel you ⬆️

🦶Feet: take shorter faster steps and don’t run on the balls of your feet overtaxing the calves

🥵Effort: focus on maintaining the same effort not pace.

Mentally remind yourself of the great downhill coming for recovery! For every up there must be a down (lies I tell myself 😂while running).

👉👉How often do you incorporate hill repeats??
🛑STOP ROLLING YOUR IT BAND. You can’t lengthe 🛑STOP ROLLING YOUR IT BAND. You can’t lengthen it or loosen it that way.  So while it’s inflamed that’s like pushing in a bruise and asking it to heal.🙈
//
SAVE THIS! 📌

What to do instead:
1️⃣Roll the surrounding muscles, especially glutes, TFL, quads and calves. If they are tight they pull on your IT Band causing knee pain.

2️⃣Do glute and hip strength constantly- that is what will resolve it long term. Lots of videos here and in my 30 Day Core Program for Runners that will help.

3️⃣Use heat to relax the muscles, don’t use ice on your already right ITB. It will get tighter.

4️⃣Rest doesn’t fix ITB. Stop running through pain, but you have to do the above to actually fix it.

Have you ever dealt with ITB? Did you know not to roll it??

ITB issues are no fun and often feel like a never ending battle once it starts, but I promise these things will help.😁

PS - yes I pulled out an old video today and dang look at my hair!! Miss those long locks.
Follow on Instagram
Website written, managed and maintained by Amanda Brooks, a certified running coach and personal trainer. Any advice should be taken as general information and not a personalized plan. All opinions, tips and reviews are based upon her personal life experience and the experiences of those she has coached. View our full privacy and review policy.

Copyright © 2021 RunToTheFinish

Copyright © 2021 · RunToTheFinish V2 on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in