For months, the Dublin Marathon has been the sun around which everything else has orbited. The long runs. The foam rolling. The pasta. The early nights. Then suddenly, it is over. The medal is hanging up, the legs are stiff, and for the first time in weeks there is no alarm set for a long Sunday run. What should feel like relief can, for many runners, feel more like loss.
The post marathon blues are real. It is not weakness, and it is not unusual. Once the adrenaline fades and the structure slips away, it is common to feel flat, restless, or even a bit lost. For some, it passes after a few quiet days. For others, it lingers and starts to affect their mood, focus, and even their motivation to run again.
The Empty Space After the Goal
When a marathon is on the horizon, it gives your days purpose. Every run, every meal, every early night points towards that single moment at the finish line. The body learns routine, the mind thrives on structure. Then, after months of tunnel vision, that structure disappears overnight.
Sports psychologists often describe it as a kind of achievement hangover. The brain has been flooded for months with goal driven chemicals like dopamine and serotonin. Once the goal is gone, those levels drop. It is the same reason Olympians and professional athletes often report feeling low in the weeks after major championships. For recreational runners, it is no different. The effort and emotion are real, even if the cameras are not.
When the Motivation Dries Up
Many runners find that the week after a marathon brings a strange kind of tiredness that goes beyond the legs. There is physical recovery, of course, but also mental exhaustion. The thing that used to drive you, the plan, the countdown, the sense of progress, is gone.
Work can start to feel harder. Concentration dips. You might find yourself scrolling more, sleeping longer, or just feeling unfocused. It is not laziness, it is your body and mind recalibrating. Months of single minded training leave a gap that normal life does not fill immediately.
The Emotional Side of the Come Down
There is also the emotional whiplash of it all. On race day you are surrounded by energy, cheering, and purpose. The next week? Silence. No crowds, no mileage targets, no race day buzz. You go from being part of something huge to sitting on the sofa wondering what to do with yourself.
Some runners even feel guilty about feeling low. "I should be happy, I just ran a marathon," they tell themselves. But emotions are not logical. The post race slump is your system adjusting after an enormous physical and emotional effort. It is the quiet after the storm, and it is normal to feel strange in that space.
Healthy Ways to Cope
The key is not to rush back into chasing another race too quickly. Let your mind and body recover together. Here are a few small but meaningful ways to ease through the post marathon dip.
1. Rest without guilt.
Sleep, eat, and move when you feel ready. Rest is not laziness, it is repair. The recovery phase is just as important as the training phase.
2. Keep light structure.
You do not need a sixteen week plan, but gentle movement helps. Walks, yoga, or short jogs can keep you grounded without pressure.
3. Talk about it.
If you are feeling low, say so to a friend, clubmate, or even your GP if needed. Mental health dips can happen after big goals, and there is no shame in that.
4. Reflect, do not ruminate.
Instead of picking apart what went wrong, write down what you achieved and learned. You finished something extraordinary. Own that.
5. Look forward slowly.
Start thinking about what you might enjoy next, a 10K, a trail race, or just running for fun again. But do not force it. Let the motivation return naturally.
Rebuilding Balance
The period after a marathon is a chance to reconnect with other parts of life that may have been sidelined during training. Meals out, family time, or just a lazy weekend morning without a long run looming. These moments help restore balance.
For many runners, that balance becomes the next stage of growth. The marathon is not just a physical test, it is a mirror. It shows what we are capable of, but also how much energy and identity we can invest in one goal. Learning to step back is part of becoming a more mature athlete and a happier person.
The Bigger Picture
It helps to remember that the post marathon blues do not mean the experience was not worth it. In fact, they often signal how much it was worth. The emotional dip shows how deeply you cared, how much of yourself you poured into the process. It is the mind’s way of saying, "That mattered."
Give yourself permission to feel proud and to rest. The motivation will return in time, often stronger and clearer than before. You might find that the next race is not about chasing a faster time, but about running with more balance, more self awareness, and maybe even more joy.
Because after all the planning, training, and obsession, that is what running gives us, not just the high of the finish line, but the lessons we carry long after the medal is hung up.