It's been a week since my trail half marathon. I didn't think it would take me this long to recover but it did. It took me a solid week.
I googled how long it should take to recover from a half marathon a lot.
I thought since I was kind of counting the run as my long run for the week and didn't go especially fast that I'd be fine just like after a long run. But it took me longer to bounce back and that's fine. I thought it would take 2-3 days, like maybe a serious runner. But apparently I fell closer to *casual* runner in terms of recovery. I like to think that I'm tough. Maybe I'm just not as tough as I want to be.
After the race
After the race, I changed out of my wet clothes as soon as possible. I put on compression sleeves. I walked around some and stretched. I wasn't really hungry but I forced myself to eat a packet of trail mix. And eventually I remembered to drink water. I took two small cups of gatorade. I drove home (stopped and got a sandwich and forced myself to eat half) and kept walking around. Since I had to walk the dog and get ready for a board meeting.
At maybe 4 hours after the race, I started to feel really sick. I was shaking. I was having some GI issues. I couldn't breathe. I downed two huge cups full of water and felt better. I forced myself to eat the other half of the sandwich (and still wasn't hungry). I rolled my legs out.
My calves started cramping up a tad that night at the board meeting from all the sitting. I rolled more.
The day after
My toenails have never hurt this much in my life. It was so painful.
I knew at mile 8 that I was going to have blisters or toenail issues. I pounded those uphills and downhills and felt it. I knew I could run another 4 miles so it wasn't an issue. I ended up with one blood blister on a toenail that was already black before the race. I drained the blister after the race and didn't have any more blisters. Just the black toenails. Two of which turned purple a few days after the race. Not immediately. In retrospect, I should have laced my shoes better. Because my shoes were the right size, and I wore good socks (so I didn't get more blisters), it was just all of the hills.
But the day after, I soaked my feet in epsom salt and it was amazing. (I've done this most days since). I soaked my feet and put ointment and bandaids on my toenails.
My legs felt fine. I went on a walk. I did some yoga. I took it easy. Had a headache and made sure to drink plenty of water.
Two days later.
That Monday, I felt like I should run to shakeout my legs. But I was super busy and tired. So I did 20 minutes on the stationary bike to get things moving.
(I did NOT want to wear shoes). I had a headache and forced myself to drink water most of the day.
Three days later
That Tuesday, I did 4 easy miles. I did have to stop a few times. It wasn't a great run, but I felt like I needed to get things moving.
Four days after
Wednesday. I felt bad for missing Tuesday speed work, so I tried to do some speed. My training plan had 4 miles at race pace. Which is in the 7:25-7:30 range.
Mile 1: 7:36.
Mile 2: 7:45.
I couldn't hit the goal pace. And I felt tired. So I took a break and walked 200 meters after the first two miles.
Mile 3: 7:42
Mile 4: 7:29
So I hit a total of one mile at goal pace. One.
It was weird. My legs didn't feel tired, the way my legs usually feel tired. I've run on tired legs. But the run felt weird. Nothing hurt. Towards the end of the run, my thighs felt a little like jelly. Just my thighs. They were moving, but not as fast as I wanted. Nothing hurt. I was just working really hard for what should come fairly easily.
I'm telling myself that putting in the work counts for something. That ALMOST FAST miles are better than no miles?
Five days after.
Thursday. I usually take Thursday off. I was a tad busy, so I did 20 minutes on the exercise bike and 20 minutes worth of core.
Six days after
It was a glorious day. The weather was warm (perfect) and the sky was blue. It was the perfect day for a run. My plan was to do my long run—8 miles.
Mile 1 was sluggish. At mile 2, I fell. And while I usually get right back up. I sat there for maybe 90 seconds not wanting to get up. I eventually did. And then went to the bathrooms. It was hot so I wanted water. The water fountains had been taken out of the bathrooms. At mile 3, I knew I wasn't doing 8. I finished 4 and then eked out five miles. I stopped a lot during the run. It was an awful run.
My legs didn't feel tired the way they usually feel tired. My body was just screaming to stop. In retrospect, I ran it like when I've run when I'm sick. Like I don't have enough energy. So I ran five miles and was completely discouraged. At this point, I haven't had a good run 2+ weeks.
Seven days later
I was supposed to run in the morning. Before going to two birthday parties. But I really didn't have time to get in a run before leaving at 9. So I skipped my run. I should have done it after the two parties. But I'm always drained after being around people that much. So I took a nap and decided my legs could use another day of rest. I did some exercise bike and abs (and soaked my feet, like I've done almost every day this week).
Day 8
My legs finally felt normal and it was a good run. FINALLY.
So it took a week to recover from the trail half. It's okay to rest. It's okay to take it easy on your legs. I'm glad I got through that.
Workouts this week: 4 runs, 2 exercise bike, 2 core workouts, 1 yoga
Miles this week: 19
