Long Run the Day After a Race

I wouldn't say benefit but jim ryun, and most great high school athletes did their long runs the day after a race.

Under the circumstances, I would do the long run on Monday. I've got a 5K race this Saturday and I could force a long run on Sunday. But the following Monday is a holiday for me and that's when I'm doing mine. There's no question that I'll be able to get a better quality long run (and enjoy it more) if I wait.

I did a long run with the team a day after my 3rd college xc meet (5 miles). Didn't run again for 18 years because of the injury.

15 hard miles..... wrote:

I did a long run with the team a day after my 3rd college xc meet (5 miles). Didn't run again for 18 years because of the injury.

15 months ago I did a 22-mile run the day after a 5-mile race. I am still trying to recover from the Achilles tendon injury that resulted. Of course I can't prove I wouldn't have gotten injured if I'd waited another day or two after the race.

15 hard miles..... wrote:

I did a long run with the team a day after my 3rd college xc meet (5 miles). Didn't run again for 18 years because of the injury.

In college our coach encouraged us to do a long run on Sundays but didn't require it, and he didn't want us to do it hard. For historical reasons relating to his alma mater he called it a "mole run."

You can, however lay out the benefits/ cons

You'll have a higher weekly mileage, however it'll be less quality.

You'll have to take the next monday super easy, to sharpen up for tuesday wo

You'll be on a tuesday thurs w/o schedule leaving one friday inbetween a wo and race. You may not be recovered.

I have tried both, long run after a large pr and it was painful, and slower pace. The next day I basically had to use as a "sunday shakeout" even though it was the start of a new week. Not sure how i like the schedule, because its a lot of stress on the legs.

Its really all about how your body handles the stress of running. If you feel good and can keep it up, all the power to you! Nobody on here can tell you exactly how you will feel. We can give you our experience, as well as some physiology but not how your body will react. Try it for yourself and see how it will feel.

Probably good earlier in the season- legs being run while tired.

Later season probably silly, all about recovery at that point.

When I have done LRs after races, they are always STUPID easy.

Yes! It is important because it'll benefit your endurance. Don't make it an easy run either make sure it's a progression long run. Unless you have a championship race the following week then I should take it easy. I train through all my races and only taper in important races. It seems to work for my teammates and I !

I don't know wrote:

is there any benefit for this? Normally I do long runs on Monday and just an easy recovery the day after a race (Sunday)

It depends on how stressful the long run is TO YOU.

If you took most of the summer off, TOO STRESSFUL. If you only run 30 mpw, TOO STRESSFUL. If you are in HS and have only run a handful of 10 milers, a 10 miler is TOO STRESSFUL. If after the race, something hurts and you get 2 miles into a 12 mile run and it still hurts, TOO STRESSFUL.

The benefit of doing the long run the day after is that it allows you an extra day between your weekly workout, now run on Tuesday rather than Wednesday, and your next Saturday race.

We did lots of them through HS and college but neither program was really into making them long (mostly 12 miles) or hard so you could end up in a group that was only doing 8 if you were fried.

My favorite training/racing cadence was:

S: (AM): Race, (PM): Easy run (5-8)

S: Easy run (5-8)

M: Long run (throw in some strides toward the end or do a fast finish)

T: Easy run (5-8)

W: (AM): Possibly easy run, (PM): Intervals

T: Easy run (5-6) Note: Maybe two easy runs of 5-miles each

F Easy run (3-5) or day off.

Rinse & repeat

This is what I did for 5/10K road racing.

Its perfectly fine and beneficial to do a long run the day after a race as long as you run it easy and aren't a little bitch.

I ran a 5K last Saturday--first race in 18 months, after a long struggle with hamstring injury--and did my usual 14 on Sunday. (I'm running 45 mpw.) I was a little slower than usual, but I was fine on Monday morning for my usual 3-mile jog and today I felt great.

In my experience, you can do a normal LR on the day after a 5K, but if the race is any longer than that--5 miles or more, say--you'd be better off doing a modestly reduced long run. In my case, if I'm usually running 14 (in 2:05 or so), then I'd run 10-12, or maybe even just 9, depending on how I'm feeling. That's the day after a 5 mile or 10K.

The day after a 10 miler or half marathon, just take a day off or jog an easy half hour.

The question is why would you do a long run the day after a race?

Are you training for a marathon so you need the mileage?

Do you race multiple weekends in a row so you need to fit your long runs in somewhere or you won't do any?

Was the race not an all-out effort?

My point is that it's usually best to make your training intentional. Even if you're trying out new stuff to see how it works for you, at least understand how it fits into your total program and what you hope to gain from it.

Ran 15:47 for xc 5k in high school, ran 14 miles next day for long run in 90 minutes. Cooldown well enough after the race and you will be fine