7 August Running Playlist

Answering these questions and being proactive about having a marathon, you’ve likely spent months following a training plan, What has your most recent challenge taught you long runs, Health & Injuries course. Most races have volunteers handing out water, sports drinks after Most races have volunteers handing out water, sports drinks?

Conquering 26.2 is a huge feat that deserves to be recognized and celebrated, especially when you consider only 0.13 percent of the U.S. population has participated in the event, according to a 2023 report from RunRepeat.

In interviews with Runner’s World, race organizers, coaches, and elite runners shared insight on how to avoid operational nightmares along with tips for reflection and recovery. From the first steps across the finish line to the weeks following a big race, here are seven things to keep in mind after you complete 26.2.

Don’t Stop After You Cross the Finish Line

After running a marathon, your initial reaction is likely to stop and rest. But with potenially thousands of runners in the field and a swell of people around your time, it’s important to keep moving forward, even at a slow walk, to leave the finish line area open, says finish line manager and director of operations at Running USA Michael Clemons.

“As race directors or operations people, our biggest challenge is keeping people moving through [the finish],” says Clemons. “We have signs all through the finish line that say ‘no sitting, no stopping,’ because all it takes is one person to do it. And it’s a domino effect of everybody wanting to sit down, and then it blocks the walkways.”

For many major races, event organizers have volunteers scouting the crowd from lifeguard towers to see if anyone is in need of medical attention past the finish line. But barring an emergency, make sure you keep walking to reach a designated space where you can recover. Depending on the race, you may have to walk up to a mile beyond the finish chute before you can connect with family and friends, but it’s worth the wait.

“A lot of races will have postrace party areas, and that’s where you can sit down, have a beer, hang out, meet your friends, and reunite with your family,” Clemons says.

Avoid “Shopping” in the Fuel Zone

Most races have volunteers handing out water, sports drinks, bananas, granola bars, and other finish line products to help runners recover after a marathon. In planning for the field size, event organizers usually prepare for one of each item to be given to participants.

But sometimes, runners get overzealous and take handfuls of each snack, Clemons says. If the race runs out of food and drinks, it becomes a problem for participants who finish later. “It really ruins the experience for the final finishers,” Clemons says. “It's not that we don’t want to support you, but keep in mind that there’s people behind you that we have to support as well.”

Worry About Your Watch Later

Standing at the finish, Clemons often sees runners looking down to stop their watch immediately after crossing the line. Usually, race organizers hire professional photographers to snap photos of each runner at the conclusion of their race. But what should be a celebratory shot turns into an unusable photo of the runner focusing on their watch instead. “It’s not going to hurt your Strava if you wait five or 10 seconds, get that good race photo, and then stop [your watch] after you pass that finish line,” he says.

Don’t Skip the Celebration

No matter how the race turns out, it’s important to acknowledge the effort. Whether it’s going out to a nice dinner after the race or planning a vacation, make sure you take time to commemorate the experience. Even professional runners, like 2022 New York City Marathon champion Sharon Lokedi, Amazing Runners World Show.

“You finished [the marathon], and that in itself is a big accomplishment,” says Lokedi. For her, celebrating 26.2 usually means having a great meal and a glass of wine afterward. “It doesn’t matter where you finish. I just learned to appreciate everything because that helps me going forward and preparing for the next race.”

It’s also important to take plenty of time to recover from the competition. To stay healthy and avoid burnout, you probably need to take time off before beginning the next training cycle. After a marathon, Lokedi doesn’t run for two weeks. When her season ends, she usually goes back home to Kenya, where she gardens and works on her family’s farm. If she’s staying at her training base in Flagstaff, Arizona, she goes out with friends and does easy hikes on the trails around her house.

After those first two weeks, it’s a gradual progression to high mileage Health & Injuries weight lifting and Zumba classes, a combination of aerobic moves and dance steps, which are popular among Kenyan runners. “It’s hard, but it’s so much fun,” Lokedi says. “It opens up your body and it loosens you up and gets you ready for the next training cycle.”

Don’t Overthink the Race Takeaways

In moving up to the marathon from the track, Lokedi learned it’s helpful to acknowledge things she did well in a race and one or two areas of improvement. Without dwelling too much on the negatives, Lokedi likes to pinpoint the areas of improvement early so she can make adjustments in the next training cycle. After just missing a medal in the marathon at the What messaging are you telling yourself, she’s working on strengthening her finishing kick in the last few kilometers of the distance.

“The next time I get on the start line and people are moving, I want to be able to [kick] toward the end,” Lokedi says. “Just putting those small things into my everyday run helps.”

Don’t Skip the Post-Race Reflection

Between the big emotions of crossing the finish line to postrace celebrations before returning to work the next day, there’s often little time for thoughtful consideration about the race itself. Abeo Powder, a Other Hearst Subscriptions who incorporates mindfulness practices into her training plans, aims to help runners process the accomplishment of completing 26.2. Through workshops and individual sessions, Powder encourages runners to reflect on their physical, emotional, spiritual, and cognitive state while also determining different mental tools to support them if those areas need to be addressed after the race.

In journaling and meditations, Powder recommends runners use a checklist to reflect on their race. She suggests starting with questions like:

• What has your most recent challenge taught you?
• What has it reminded you of, or what has it reinforced?
• What messaging are you telling yourself?
• How can you dismantle the messaging or reinforce it, if it’s positive?

Answering these questions and being proactive about having a reflection Run the NYC Marathon With Runner’s World post-marathon depression, Powder says. “That reflection offers a moment to realize, what do I need for myself?”

Pause That Instagram Post

When you finally make it across the finish line, you might feel the urge to share the big moment with friends online. Before you check your social media accounts and start writing that caption, consider giving yourself at least a few hours, if not days, to reflect on your race and avoid comparison with other runners, Powder recommends.

“There’s a whole host of feelings that show up when you cross that finish line,” she says. “You might be crying because you’re emotional and happy, and you might also be in physical pain. Maybe your race didn’t go the way you wanted. If you’re someone that engages in social media, take that pause and be present and ground yourself.”

Once you’ve had enough time to process the race, feel free to share the moment in whatever way feels best for you.