A complete guide to recovery nutrition.
Phew, the biggest marathon in Australian history is now over and I’m sure many of us are feeling the aches and pains of crushing the forty-two-point-two last weekend.
To me, resilience is not about how much we can endure, but how well we recover so that we can endure for longer.
If Sydney ignited a marathon flame in you, and you’ve already googled ‘fastest marathons in Australia’ for something to now turn your attention to, then congratulations. You’re hooked. Welcome to the runner’s life of afternoon naps, smellier laundry baskets and Strava becoming your number one social media platform.
But, before we launch immediately into whatever’s next, I implore you to take a moment to respect the impact running a marathon has on your body.
There is a lot you CAN do immediately after you cross the finish line, such as get your carbs and protein in asap, but I also am a big believer in enjoying the moment you’ve worked so hard for. Yes, not nailing the immediate post run nutrition might slow down your recovery, but unless you’re a professional athlete who can’t afford to take any downtime, then I truly believe the memories of the finish line outweigh the need to follow any strict food rules.
Get off your feet, soak up the atmosphere, and do whatever your body and soul are craving. Reward yourself.
Once your home, maybe had a nap, and have processed the experience you’ve just been through, now we can start to think about ways to help you feel better in the proceeding week.
Marathon night.
Now we can start to think about getting the right recovery foods in. We want to target a dinner that’s high in protein to help build and restore the muscle degradation experienced from the event, and carbohydrates to replenish our muscle and liver glycogen stores.
A fast way to get this in is by drinking milk-based products, like a milkshake, or a smoothie. It contains a great combination of proteins and carbohydrates and provides hydration. If you’re non-dairy, go for soy or cashew milk as your higher protein sources, or just add a scoop of plant-based protein to the smoothie.
It’s ok now to start reintroducing the high fibre meals again, such as wholemeal pasta, vegetables, and other wholefoods that contain some great lower GI carbohydrates.
We want to aim for around 30g of complete protein to help fuel muscle repair. This could be through lean meats, legumes, beans, eggs, or tofu. A simple meal of salmon (or Tempe), brown rice and vegetables will tick every box outlined above.
You might be craving salt, so feel free to add an extra twist of the salt bottle to your meal tonight. Sodium is the mineral that is more rapidly diminished during a long race.
Finally, staying on top of your hydration is a sure-fire way to improve how you wake up. This is particularly important if you’ve had a celebration beer or three. A big glass of water with an electrolyte tab, or even berocca (it’s like an early hangover cure) in the hours before and after dinner will help with this.
Don’t worry if you don’t sleep too well on marathon night, it’s very common. You might be kept awake by the aches and pains, or you might still be feeling some of the adrenaline from the days excitement.
One great tip to bring yourself into a parasympathetic state (rest and digest) is to perform some breathing exercises while laying in bed. A simple routine of inhale through your nose for five seconds, hold your breath for 15 seconds, and then do a nasal exhale for 10 seconds should do the trick.
The next few days.
It’s a good idea to skip your morning run for the first few days after a marathon to allow the joints, muscles and tendons and ligaments to rest and recovery too, but it’s actually beneficial to add in some slow movement and mobility to stop ourselves from getting too stiff.
Low-impact exercises such as yoga, swimming, bike riding and walking are great ways to improve blood flow, remove lactic acid and prevent stiffness.
Spend some of the time you’re usually out running to foam roll and stretch, both through dynamic movement and static holds.
If you can, treat yourself to a massage! Go on, you’ve earnt it.
Over the next few days, we want to look to keep our hydration up so keep sipping on that water.
Although our diets can return to normal, a great way to help with inflammation is to introduce some anti-inflammatory foods such as:
- Green tea.
- Fruits such as blueberries, avocados and pineapple.
- Vegetables such as broccoli and spinach.
- Fish, aim for oily fish.
- Lentils
- Wholegrains.
- Walnuts and other nuts.
- Curcumin (turmeric) supplements.
- Olive oil.
Keep up the lean protein. Try and include 20g of protein in each meal for the next few days, supplementing with protein powder if unable to get this in through wholefoods. We want to promote muscle rebuild and recovery.
We can have a reduced immune response in the first 48 hours post intense exercise (it’s called the J-shaped curve, I’ll write a post about it soon). Reach for foods with a high vitamin C count, such as fruits, and leafy vegetables. Or, consider supplementing.
Other supplements that can aid recovery include Vitamin B complex, Zinc and Magnesium (at night). They’re all involved in energy production and can give you the pick me up you may need if your natural stores are falling short.
As always, we’re all different, and have different recovery levels. If you want to talk about ways to improve your recovery, let’s have a chat!
