How long should you rest after a marathon? Coach Amanda (fresh off her fall marathon) and Coach Nick cover marathon recovery from taper week to your first run back.
Pre-race recovery: why sleep across your whole training block matters more than the night before, packing a carb-load cooler for race travel, compression socks vs. calf sleeves on flights, protecting your social battery, and how long a shakeout run should be.
Post-race recovery: why you should eat within an hour of finishing (even when you are not hungry), how to plan food at big-city marathons, how many days off to take (10 days to 2 weeks for Amanda, 7 days minimum for Nick), why workouts can take up to 8 weeks to feel normal, the recovery tools coaches actually use, and how to handle the post-marathon blues.
Today's episode is sponsored by CEP and Running Explained listeners get 15% off their entire order when shopping CEP Running online through November 15! Shop CEP Running or enter code LRL-NYC-15 at checkout.
Offer ends November 16, 2026, at 3:00AM EST. Limit one use per customer. Cannot be combined with other discounts.
Timestamps
0:00 Intro
2:44 Pre-race recovery and taper
7:14 Sleep before a marathon
11:00 Compression socks vs. sleeves for travel
16:13 Shakeout runs
26:08 Post-race recovery starts at the finish line
29:03 What to eat after a marathon
38:50 How long to rest after a marathon
45:59 Favorite recovery tools
50:34 Post-marathon blues
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