Running, inflammation, and recovery: preparing your body for race day

February is a peak training month for spring races. Long runs increase in duration, intensity sessions become more frequent, and cumulative fatigue starts to build. With the Bath Half approaching, many runners begin to notice low-level aches, stiffness, or a general heaviness that feels manageable at first, until it lingers…

Understanding how running affects inflammation in the body, and how to support physiological and neurological recovery in the final weeks before race day, can influence not only performance but how resilient you feel during training. This is not about adding more sessions. It is about responding more accurately to what your body is telling you.

When endurance racing starts to feel “normal”

In this day and age, it can feel as though everyone is running a marathon or half marathon. Training plans are widely available, social feeds are full of race medals, and endurance events are often presented as a routine part of an active lifestyle. It’s worth pausing to remember that these are still significant physical feats and not for the faint-hearted!

Covering 21km at pace places considerable stress on muscles, joints, connective tissue, and the nervous system. Even when training is well structured, the cumulative load required to prepare for a half marathon is substantial. The body does not distinguish between a race completed for enjoyment, charity, or competition. The physiological demand is the same.

Normalising endurance events can make it easier to overlook early signs of overload or dismiss fatigue as something to push through. Recognising the scale of the effort involved helps reframe rest, recovery, and adaptation as essential parts of training rather than optional extras.

Listening to running niggles rather than ignoring them

Structured training plans and running apps are useful for consistency and motivation. They provide progression, structure, and accountability. What they cannot do is feel how your body is responding on any given day.

Niggles often appear when inflammatory load exceeds the body’s ability to adapt. That does not always mean injury is imminent, but it is a sign that tissue stress, nervous system fatigue, or sleep debt is accumulating.

Replacing a hard session with a lower-intensity run, mobility work, or a focused recovery session is not a failure of discipline. It is an informed adjustment. Long-term consistency comes from responding early rather than pushing through warning signs.

How does running influence inflammation in the body?

Well, running places repeated mechanical stress through muscles, tendons, joints, and connective tissue. This stress is necessary for adaptation. Without it, strength, endurance, and efficiency do not improve. Inflammation is part of this adaptive process.

After a run, particularly long-distance or high-intensity efforts, muscle fibres experience micro-damage. This triggers an inflammatory response involving cytokines, immune cells, and increased blood flow to affected tissue. In the short term, this response supports repair and adaptation.

Problems arise when this inflammatory response becomes prolonged. Insufficient rest, poor sleep, nutritional gaps, or repeated high-load sessions can prevent inflammation from resolving fully. Instead of returning to baseline, the body remains in a low-grade inflammatory state. This can impair muscle repair, reduce neuromuscular efficiency, and increase injury risk.

Reducing inflammation safely does not mean suppressing it entirely. Anti-inflammatory medication may blunt symptoms, but it can also interfere with adaptation if used frequently. A more sustainable approach focuses on circulation, nervous system balance, sleep quality, and timing of stress.

Why does inflammation feels more noticeable in the final weeks before a race?

The final three to four weeks before a half marathon often feel disproportionately difficult. Training load is high, but recovery time does not increase to match it. Several factors contribute to this.

Race-pace sessions place greater metabolic and neuromuscular demand on the body. Glycogen depletion increases, muscle damage accumulates, and the nervous system is required to fire more efficiently under fatigue. At the same time, many runners are balancing work stress, disrupted sleep, and seasonal illness. This creates cumulative load across both physical and mental systems.

Inflammation does not always present as sharp pain. It often shows up as stiffness on waking, reduced motivation, heavy legs, or slower warm-ups. These are not signs of weakness. They are indicators that recovery processes are being stretched. Recognising these signals early allows adjustments that protect training quality rather than compromise it.

How can I support training adaptation without changing your training plan?

Most runners approaching race day want to maintain momentum. That is understandable. Supporting physiological adaptation does not require reducing commitment, but it does require improving the conditions under which adaptation occurs.

The aim is to move the body out of a constant stress response and back into a stress–adapt cycle.Key mechanisms to support include:

Sleep and hormonal regulation

Deep sleep supports growth hormone release, tissue repair, and immune function. Even small improvements in sleep timing and consistency can influence inflammation and perceived fatigue.

Circulatory support

Improved blood flow assists nutrient delivery and waste removal from stressed tissue. Low-intensity movement, contrast exposure, and heat can support this process without adding mechanical load.

Nervous system balance

High training volumes increase sympathetic nervous system activity. Without periods of parasympathetic activation, the body remains in a heightened state that slows repair. Calm environments, controlled breathing, and heat exposure can help shift this balance. Environment dictates the outcome.

Training support strategies runners often overlook

Stretching and foam rolling address muscle tone, but they are only one part of the picture. Cold exposure, when used deliberately, can reduce post-run soreness by limiting excessive inflammatory response and altering pain perception. Heat exposure increases tissue elasticity and circulation, supporting movement quality and relaxation.

Contrast between cold and heat encourages vascular response, training blood vessels to constrict and dilate efficiently. This supports fluid movement and inflammatory regulation rather than complete suppression. Used appropriately, these strategies complement training rather than interfere with adaptation.

Are you taking part in the Bath Half this March?

The Bath Half is one of the UK’s most established road races, attracting thousands of runners each year. The route takes in Bath’s historic streets and river paths, supported by large crowds and a strong local atmosphere.

Race day is well organised, but it is also physically demanding. Expect a busy start, variable pacing conditions, and a significant energy demand in the final kilometres.

If you are taking part, preparation extends beyond training mileage. Planning sleep, nutrition, and recovery in the weeks leading up to the race can influence how you feel on the day and how quickly you return to baseline afterwards.

You can find full race details and sign-up information here.

Why what you do after the race matters just as much

Inflammation peaks after race day, not before it. A half marathon places significant strain on muscle fibres, connective tissue, and the nervous system. Muscle damage is highest in the twenty-four to forty-eight hours following the race, alongside increased immune activity and fluid shifts.

Without appropriate post-race support, inflammation can remain elevated for days or weeks. This often results in prolonged soreness, disrupted sleep, and a delayed return to normal training or daily activity.

A structured post-race approach supports tissue repair, restores nervous system balance, and reduces the likelihood of compensatory injuries later in the season.

A simple evidence-informed post-half marathon approach includes:

• Gentle movement within 24 hours to support circulation

• Heat exposure to improve tissue elasticity and relaxation

• Cold exposure to manage soreness and perceived inflammation (promise – this is more than just a plug, it’s science!)

• Prioritised sleep in the days following the race

• Avoiding hard training until movement quality and energy levels return

Why ISKA supports post-run adaptation

ISKA is designed to support the body after high physical demand, not replace training or compete with it. Infrared heat supports circulation, muscle relaxation, and nervous system downregulation. Cold immersion can help manage post-run soreness and inflammatory response when used at appropriate intensity and duration. Red light exposure supports cellular repair processes and tissue recovery following mechanical stress.

Used together or individually, these tools support physiological processes already underway after intense effort. For runners ISKA provides a structured environment to support adaptation, reduce lingering fatigue, and restore balance after race day.

BOOK YOUR SESSION TODAY

Inflammation from running is not something to eliminate. It is something to regulate. With the Bath Half approaching, supporting adaptation alongside training allows you to arrive on the start line prepared rather than depleted.

Small, consistent adjustments in the final weeks often have the greatest impact on how you feel during and after the race.

Thanks for reading!

The ISKA Team