Zero Week

Or, lazy week. What to do after a marathon?

Since Hal Higdon's plan worked so well for the marathon, I once again looked to Hal for what to do after running a marathon. Hal refers to the week following the big 26.2 as 'Zero Week:'

Generally, it takes a minimum of two to three weeks for the body to recover from the strain of running 26 miles 385 yards. Return too quickly and you increase your risk of injury. Some experts suggest resting one day for every mile you run in the marathon, thus 26 days of no hard running or racing! Others suggest one day for every kilometer, thus 42 days rest. Well, that might be waiting too long before resuming tough training...  The training you do in the three weeks following a marathon should be a near mirror of what you did the last three weeks before: in other words, an upward, or reverse, taper.

I'm definitely not waiting 26 days to run again, but I do want to make sure I take extra precautions this/next week to avoid injury. Hal's Zero Week looks like this:

Monday: No running
Tuesday: No running
Wednesday: No running
Thursday: Ok, you can run. But just 2 miles
Friday: No running
Saturday: Ok, you can run. But just 2-3 miles
Sunday: Ok, you're getting antsy. Don't push it, and don't run more than an hour (about 6 miles for me)

So far, I've aced this week... Monday, I flew home to SC and my legs were too sore to even think about running. Tuesday was a similar story, but today I'm feeling antsy. But the worst thing that could happen would be to get hurt, so I'm going to stick to Hal's plan.

Thank goodness the Thursday run coincides with Thanksgiving (and my 27th birthday!)-- I won't feel nearly as guilty with a run, even if it's just a little one.

So for now, I'm introducing Jason to the ways of the South, like oyster roasts:

For people who've run a marathon, did you back off the week after? Or did you jump back in like this blogger?