“If you’re sleeping in your compression socks and snapping at your partner for breathing too loudly, it’s time to talk about proper rest.”
By late August, Dublin Marathon training can feel less like a hobby and more like an unpaid internship for a cult. You’re constantly tired, your legs ache in places you didn’t know had muscles, and you’ve developed a level of irritability usually reserved for Ryanair check-in queues.
If you’re reading this thinking, “But I’m fine!”, you’re either in denial, or you’ve been skipping the long runs.
Why Recovery Isn’t “Optional”
First-time marathoners tend to think the magic happens while running. Wrong. The magic happens while recovering from running. That’s when your muscles rebuild, your energy stores replenish, and your mood improves enough that your family stops hiding from you.
Push too hard without enough recovery and you’ll end up:
- Injured
- Burnt out
- Crying into a bowl of pasta wondering if it’s too late to switch to the relay
Signs You’re Overcooking It
- Persistent soreness: not the “ooh, that was a good workout” kind, but the “why does walking downstairs feel like defusing a bomb?” kind.
- Poor sleep: either too wired to sleep, or out cold but waking up feeling like you fought a stag in your dreams.
- Grumpiness: snapping at strangers, muttering at the toaster, or giving out to your GPS watch because it “lied” about your pace.
- Performance drop: if your easy pace feels like a tempo run, something’s off.
How Much Rest Do You Actually Need?
This depends on your mileage, age, and how well your body recovers, but a good Dublin first-timer rule is:
- At least one full rest day per week
- Two easy days after your long run
- Cut back your mileage by 20–30% every 3–4 weeks for a “cutback week”, yes, you’re meant to do less sometimes
Recovery Tools Worth Using
1. Sleep
The most underrated recovery tool there is. Aim for 7–9 hours. If that means going to bed before your mates have even left the pub, so be it.
2. Nutrition
Recovery isn’t an excuse for a week-long pizza crawl, but carbs + protein within an hour after running helps your legs bounce back. Bonus points if it’s actual food, not “a gel and a prayer.”
3. Hydration
If your wee looks like creosote, you’re dehydrated. Sort it out.
4. Foam Rolling & Stretching
Yes, it’s uncomfortable. No, it’s not worse than running injured. Five minutes on the quads and calves can save you weeks of pain later.
What Not to Do
- Ignore niggles: “Running through it” works until it doesn’t, and then you’re in physio explaining why you thought a stabbing pain was fine.
- Stack hard days: Tempo run followed by sprints? Congrats, you’ve invented a shin splint.
- Mistake exhaustion for laziness: If you’re genuinely fatigued, rest is training.
Conclusion
If you’re too tired to train, it’s not because you’re “not tough enough, it’s because you’re human. The Dublin Marathon is an endurance event, not a self-destruction contest.
So rest when you need to. Nap without guilt. Rotate your runs with easier sessions. And remember, the goal is to cross the finish line upright, not to win the “most dramatic limp” award at work the next day.
Because nothing kills your race-day buzz faster than realising you wrecked your chances in August… all because you thought a rest day was for quitters.
