This week was 0 miles of running, 20 "miles" of pool-running and 2000 yards of swimming -- training log is here.
Recovery week. Raising the question of how to best recover? Go completely sedentary, or do some activity? Throw dietary caution to the wind or focus on nutrition?
I'm certainly no expert, but in my opinion, recovery is both mental and physical. The first few days for me were pretty light on the fruits and veggies and sweet potatoes and lean meats, and heavy on the gluten-free cookies and turkey drumsticks with the skin on. Perfect nutrition might have been better for the body, but it was restorative to do a traditional ugly American Thanksgiving.
As for activity, I _attended_ yoga the day after the race. Which doesn't mean I really participated in the class. I showed up at Tranquil Space, did the opening stretching bit, and then childs-posed my way through much of the rest of it, though I did do a few gentle lunges. It did feel good to move my legs through their general range of motion - probably much better for recovery than just laying around.
[that's the great thing about having an unlimited annual yoga membership -- since I'm not paying by the class, I really don't feel any pressure to do the whole class - it's not like I've wasted money if I just do happy baby for 40 minutes].
And that was pretty much how the rest of the week went. I went to yoga each day, gradually expanding on the amount of the class I was actually doing, and branching out to more intense classes. By Thursday I was pretty much doing the whole class, though my chair pose was...restrained. I did some pool-running also, though it was not at all intense - just gently wiggling my legs in the water while chatting.
My quads were tight enough to gimp up my walk for most of the week, though they finally felt better on Sunday, enabling me to walk like a normal person. I can now get up from a chair (or toilet) without using my hands to assist. It's the little things, y'know.
As of Monday, they are still shaky and weak, though. Which seems ridiculous since we're now 8 days post marathon - by this time after my first marathon I was feeling just about normal. The other signs of overreaching have resolved - my resting HR is back where it should be, and I'm sleeping soundly. I'd like to start up with some gentle jogging, but I'm debating whether that's a good idea, given that the legs seem to still be recovering. I don't know whether doing some easy jogging will make my legs feel better, or slow my recovery.
My plan is to take a few more non-running days, and do some more foam-rolling and other recovery stuff. If the quads are still shaky in another few days, I may try some gentle short jogging to see if that makes a difference.
Dailies Recovery week. Raising the question of how to best recover? Go completely sedentary, or do some activity? Throw dietary caution to the wind or focus on nutrition?
I'm certainly no expert, but in my opinion, recovery is both mental and physical. The first few days for me were pretty light on the fruits and veggies and sweet potatoes and lean meats, and heavy on the gluten-free cookies and turkey drumsticks with the skin on. Perfect nutrition might have been better for the body, but it was restorative to do a traditional ugly American Thanksgiving.
As for activity, I _attended_ yoga the day after the race. Which doesn't mean I really participated in the class. I showed up at Tranquil Space, did the opening stretching bit, and then childs-posed my way through much of the rest of it, though I did do a few gentle lunges. It did feel good to move my legs through their general range of motion - probably much better for recovery than just laying around.
[that's the great thing about having an unlimited annual yoga membership -- since I'm not paying by the class, I really don't feel any pressure to do the whole class - it's not like I've wasted money if I just do happy baby for 40 minutes].
And that was pretty much how the rest of the week went. I went to yoga each day, gradually expanding on the amount of the class I was actually doing, and branching out to more intense classes. By Thursday I was pretty much doing the whole class, though my chair pose was...restrained. I did some pool-running also, though it was not at all intense - just gently wiggling my legs in the water while chatting.
My quads were tight enough to gimp up my walk for most of the week, though they finally felt better on Sunday, enabling me to walk like a normal person. I can now get up from a chair (or toilet) without using my hands to assist. It's the little things, y'know.
As of Monday, they are still shaky and weak, though. Which seems ridiculous since we're now 8 days post marathon - by this time after my first marathon I was feeling just about normal. The other signs of overreaching have resolved - my resting HR is back where it should be, and I'm sleeping soundly. I'd like to start up with some gentle jogging, but I'm debating whether that's a good idea, given that the legs seem to still be recovering. I don't know whether doing some easy jogging will make my legs feel better, or slow my recovery.
My plan is to take a few more non-running days, and do some more foam-rolling and other recovery stuff. If the quads are still shaky in another few days, I may try some gentle short jogging to see if that makes a difference.
Monday: Lie on my back during a yoga class in the morning; foam rolling at night.
Tuesday: Half-assed yoga in the morning; massage at night.
Wednesday: 30 minutes conversational pool-running plus a quarter-assed yoga class. Foam rolling in afternoon.
Thursday: 30 minutes easy pool-running and a yoga class (full-assed). Foam rolling at night.
Friday: 70 minutes conversational pool-running and a yoga class. Foam rolling at night.
Saturday: 70 minutes conversational pool-running and a yoga class. Foam rolling at night.
Sunday: 2000 yards swimming and a yoga class. Foam rolling at night.
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