The Dublin Marathon was 18 days ago.

You hear a lot about how to train for a marathon from… everyone. But not many people talk about the after.  My friend Cat wrote a great blog on the post-race blues but other than that all you’ll probably only see a few training plans mention that you should take “a few days off after the marathon.”

For me the problem with most of the advice out there is that it focuses on THE MARATHON as the be-all end-all of your running. “Now that you’ve got that out of the way, a) you never have to run again, or b) you start training up to your next race.” I think there is an in-between for people who enjoy running as a part of their life, not some activity that is added-on to their life for 16 week chunks.

We’ve all heard about the physical stress your body undergoes during a marathon. I’m no expert but even after the DOMS faded I could tell my bones & muscles were weaker than ever. They were begging for some time to relax and rebuild. So I agreed. I did nothing for a week. I didn’t go out after work, I was home by 5:30, fed by 7 and really relaxed each night. No stretching, no foam rolling. Just good ol’ fashioned not moving.  When I did go back to my lunchtime pilates & yoga classes I kept to the beginner options and didn’t push.

I’m loosely following a reverse taper & no-run-vember by building back up my running the same way I tapered down. Social 5ks with my run group and a few XC races (where I come in last anyway so it’s not like I’ll get any slower) are upcoming.  I’m leaving my Garmin at home for the month and enjoying my life rather than worrying about running.  I’ve also signed up for Jasyoga‘s Monday Night Reset which (not to exaggerate) is changing my life. If you don’t follow Jasyoga’s blog then do it right now. It’s a new-to-me approach to yoga & athletic training that really hits the spot both physically and mentally. In just 1 session Erin has completely changed the way I think about running & resting and re-introduced balance into my body.

Training for a big race is great, and looking back I’ve been doing that since January 1, 2014, but now it’s time to just run.