Sports Medicine Experts Offer Tips To Help Post-Marathon Recovery

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Nov 01, 2012, 05:03 ET

NEW YORK, Nov. 1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Close to 47,000 runners have spent the past several months training for the ING New York City Marathon. Once they have completed the race and achieved their goals, there are measures they can take to facilitate recovery, decrease post-race discomfort, and return to running without injury.

Eating immediately after the marathon, icing sore muscles, and having a gentle massage are only a few of the tips that Michael Silverman, PT, MSPT, physical therapist from the Rehabilitation Department at Hospital for Special Surgery in New York, offers runners who cross the finish line.

"Marathoners have to pay close attention to their bodies so they don't injure themselves," says Silverman. "Training should have provided runners with a good idea of how their body works. Runners should take everything they've learned in that time and apply it to taking proper care of their body after the marathon--they will feel better, faster."

The following are marathon recovery tips from Silverman on ways to bounce back from a marathon:

Replenish. Immediately after the race, you are given an ING New York City Marathon Recovery Bag presented by Hospital for Special Surgery containing foods and fluids. While you are waiting around, being ushered out of the park, consume the entire bag. This will immediately replenish salt, and add some quick carbohydrates and nutrients.
Rehydrate. After months of training a lot of runners just want to party when they finish the race. That is fine, but be smart about it. Hydrating is very important. If you consume alcohol it will only further dehydrate you. Making a smart ratio, 2:1, or 3:1 glasses of water per alcoholic beverage will help you from causing harm.
Rejuvenate. Sitting down after all of those hours of running is a shock to the body. As much as you want to just sit down after the race, it's important to keep moving!
Eating the day after is just as important. Try to stay away from enormous meals. Eat small amounts of nutrient-rich foods every 2 hours. Good meals could be steak, sweet potatoes and broccoli. Berries, chocolate or yogurt parfaits are good desserts. Chicken stir fry with loads of vegetables is an excellent lunch.
Ice your muscles often. If you are having severe muscle pain during the race, immediately go to the medical tent to ice your muscles. After returning home from the race, ice your muscles with ice packs or (preferably) an ice bath. Ice baths soothe microscopic muscle damage and inflammation. Sit in a 54-60-degree (Fahrenheit) ice bath for 6-12 minutes. 30-60 minutes afterward, take a warm shower.
Stretch correctly after the race. After finishing the race, walk for 10-15 minutes and perform very light stretching. During the next day, perform light stretching and a light warm-up (biking or a warm shower).
Get a massage a few days after the race. Use caution during the first 48 hours after the race, as your muscles are very sensitive. If you get a massage, schedule it for a few days after the race. Make sure it is a flushing (light) massage and be sure the therapist knows that you just ran a marathon.
Perform low-impact, low-intensity exercise after the race. Only start exercising when you are feeling ready. This can take up to a month. Cycling, the elliptical, and exercises in the pool (swimming, underwater running) are ideal.
Wait 5-7 days after the race before running again. Begin with decreased intensity on soft surfaces and don't run more than 25 percent of your peak weekly mileage. A good rule of thumb is: perform one week of reduced intensity training for every hour.

"Feeling sore after a marathon is normal; but pain and swelling are the body's ways of indicating that something is wrong," says Brian Halpern, M.D., a primary care sports medicine physician at Hospital for Special Surgery and author of Men's Health Best Sports Medicine Handbook. "The best way to handle almost every sports injury is the RICE method, which stands for Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation."

On Monday, November 5, experts from Hospital for Special Surgery will also lead the ING New York City Marathon Monday Recovery event at the Marathon Pavilion. They will discuss different post-race recovery approaches, stretching and provide consultations. For more information on this event, log on to http://www.ingnycmarathon.org/shop/Marathon_Monday.htm.

Hospital for Special Surgery is the Official Hospital of New York Road Runners for the ING New York City Marathon.

About Hospital for Special Surgery
Founded in 1863, Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) is a world leader in orthopedics, rheumatology and rehabilitation. HSS is nationally ranked No. 1 in orthopedics, No. 3 in rheumatology, and No. 10 in neurology, by U.S.News & World Report (2012-13), and has received Magnet Recognition for Excellence in Nursing Service from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, and has one of the lowest infection rates in the country. From 2007 to 2011, HSS has been a recipient of the HealthGrades Joint Replacement Excellence Award. A member of the NewYork-Presbyterian Healthcare System and an affiliate of Weill Cornell Medical College, HSS provides orthopedic and rheumatologic patient care at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital at New York Weill Cornell Medical Center. All Hospital for Special Surgery medical staff are on the faculty of Weill Cornell Medical College. The hospital's research division is internationally recognized as a leader in the investigation of musculoskeletal and autoimmune diseases. Hospital for Special Surgery is located in New York City and online at www.hss.edu.

About NYRR
New York Road Runners was founded in 1958 when a small group of passionate runners vowed to bring running to the people. Over the past 54 years, NYRR has grown from a local running club to the world's premier community running organization. NYRR's mission is to empower everyone, of all ages and abilities--beginners and competitive athletes, the young and the elderly, adult professionals and underserved schoolchildren--to improve their health and well-being through the power of running and fitness.

NYRR's races, community events, instruction and training resources, and youth programs give hundreds of thousands of people each year the motivation, know-how, and opportunity to start running and keep running for life. NYRR's premier event, the famed ING New York City Marathon, attracts the world's top pro runners and committed amateurs alike while also raising millions of dollars annually for charity and driving economic impact for the City. But NYRR is equally committed to the runners of tomorrow, passionately providing youth fitness programs that educate and inspire more than 100,000 kids in underserved communities in New York City, all 50 states, and around the world.

Headquartered in New York City, NYRR implements a unique nonprofit model that teams contributed and earned income to make all its efforts possible. To learn more, please visit www.nyrr.org

About the ING New York City Marathon
NYRR's premier event, the ING New York City Marathon is the most loved and most inclusive marathon in the world, attracting elite athletes and recreational runners alike for the challenge and thrill of a lifetime. The race has grown tremendously since it began in 1970 with just 127 runners racing four laps of Central Park. Now, almost 50,000 participants from all over the globe flock to New York City every November for an adrenaline-filled road tour of all five boroughs, starting on Staten Island at the foot of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and ending in Central Park. Some run for prize money or bragging rights, others for charity or their personal best. All are cheered on by more than two million live spectators and a TV audience of 330 million.

This news release was issued on behalf of Newswise™. For more information, visit http://www.newswise.com.

SOURCE Hospital for Special Surgery