Alex Rahim, Personal Trainer at Virgin Active on Marathon Recovery

question  When and what should you eat after completing the marathon?

answer

Eating as soon as possible after the marathon is vital as your body will be craving food following the stress it has just been under.

Ensure that your diet contains lots of protein, fats and carbohydrates for good recovery.

Do your best to have high quality foods – if you have low grade food growing in dirty soil or with poor substances then this will leak into your system too meaning the body will not be able to function as efficiently.

question  When do you start doing other forms of exercise again? What types of exercise to you recommend whilst recovering from a marathon?

answer

As soon as possible as this will help flush out waste products from the system and help reduce stiffness. Light runs and general movement are highly encouraged. It’s easy to become a bit lazy and just want to relax, but this makes the soreness worse and slows recovery.

Running should not only be present in your program. You should still have strength training, corrective exercise, core work, and some form of stretching at least (whether that’s foam rolling or yoga). This will help reach your full potential.

 www.virginactive.co.uk

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