For years, the Wall Street Journal tells us, m
ost marathoners thought it wise to limit the number of races run per year to two. Now, however, comes a new school of thought that suggests that running more could be just fine, and good for your finish time. The paper reports that so far in 2015, 15.8 precent of marathon finishers in races tracked by the Active Network ran more than one marathon this year, compared with just 2.3 percent in 2010. Marathon Maniacs, the Journal reports, a Tacoma, Wash.-based club that requires members to complete two marathons within 16 days or three marathons within 90 days now has nearly 12,000 members and is gaining roughly 1,000 a year. The big question is how long does it take to recover from a competitive 26-mile run. To answer the question, the Journal cites a Danish study from 2007 that tested muscle capacity before and after a marathon, and found that five days after the race it remained 12 percent lower than before the competition. It also points us to a 2011 study of 22 ultramarathoners before and after a 100-mile race showed that both their strength and the biological characteristics of their muscles returned to normal within 16 days. The Journal reports that the change of mind has some qualifiers: people are are not in top physical shape, and even those with joint problems, should minimize the number of races run.
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