Most beginners are fine with running once a day because of the duration of the run and the mileage they intended to cover.
HOW MANY TIMES A DAY SHOULD YOU RUN?
However, as you get more advanced in your running journey, you may want to consider other ways of revamping your exercise regimen and reaping more benefits.
Running twice a day, even for a beginner could be what you need to take your training to the next level.
However, you need to ensure that your mileage is more than 50 per week. Furthermore, you should increase your mileage by 10% until you are comfortable.
Only then should you start doing two runs per week.
10 INCREDIBLE BENEFITS OF RUNNING TWICE A DAY
1. ALLOWS YOUR BODY TO REST WHILE ACHIEVING YOUR DAILY MILEAGE GOALS
As a runner, you may start strong and feel like you can sustain high mileage per day without fail. However, this usually comes to a screeching halt because you tried to do too much too soon.
Your body will seldom get room for recovery, and you’ll feel as tired as you were before you started running.
To get sufficient rest, try running twice daily. Instead of doing 8 miles a day, you can do 5 in the morning then 3 in the evening.
This will give your body and mind sufficient time to rest.
According to this study, rest enhances neuromuscular function and recovery from muscle damage.
2. IT IS CONVENIENT
Long runs are very complicated because they have plenty of requirements. To complete a 1 hour or 2-hour run, you need a solid pre-workout snack and some fluids that have all the electrolytes you will need to compensate for the loss.
This means that you ought to be adequately prepared by having all these things before the run.
Running twice a day takes the pressure off your preparation efforts. You can get up, get dressed and go.
Furthermore, your body will not need too much fuel because the runs are shorter. At the same time, you are still enjoying the benefits of covering vast distance per day.
3. HELPS YOU TO TRAIN FOR A COMPETITION
If you plan on participating in a 5k, 10k marathon or in a competition of any sort then running twice a day could be just what you need to increase your stamina.
Most competitions or marathons involve distances that are longer than the average run. You thus need a way of introducing that extra mileage every day.
Running in the morning and night could condition your body to grow accustomed to such physical strain, enabling you to compete effectively.
4. CAN HELP IN FAT BURNING AND WEIGHT LOSS
In this study, it was shown that running while in a deleted states can help to burn fat. This is because the body will already have utilized its glycogen reserves and will need to rely on another source for energy.
Most times, the second run is done after a relatively short amount of time. This means that the parts of the cell responsible for glycogen production will not be at their freshest.
Thus, your brain will send a different message to your cells on what they can use for sustenance; that is fat instead of glycogen.
Fat burning is a sure-fire way of increasing weight loss, as shown here.
5. BOOSTS YOUR RUNNING FORM
Sometimes doing one long run can deceive you into thinking that you are increasing your fitness levels. However, very often long runs make you compromise your form.
After some time, you will grow weary and will assume poor posture. This can put you at risk of injury.
A way to avoid this would be to cut your runs into two. Doing shorter runs ensures that you are always in a proper form such that your muscles become accustomed to it.
6. BOOSTS YOUR STAMINA
Very often, runners like to do their workouts in the morning. At this point, your legs will have rested throughout the night.
You thus rarely get an opportunity to train when your legs are tired. This means that your stamina will not be as high.
Running twice a day causes you to run after only a short break. While the once a day runner waits for 24 hours before their next run, the twice a day runner only rests for 12 hours or less.
This makes your body accustomed to pushing itself and thus builds more stamina.
7. IMPROVES RECOVERY
Running twice a day reduces the amount of time you have for recovery. This means that your body will learn how to adjust accordingly.
Quick recovery times are essential in minimizing the chances of injury.
They are also helpful in reducing fatigue and keeping you motivated for your next run.
8. HELPS IMPROVE YOUR PACE
Most runners struggle to maintain fast speeds during long runs. However, if you split your runs into two, you can get the opportunity to do this effectively is one of them.
You may maintain a steady pace during one of the two races in your day. In the second one, you could choose to do speed work.
In case you have been trying to rev up your workouts by picking up your pace, then running twice a day could be a way of accomplishing this goal.
You thus get to add diversity into your workouts by doing tempo runs in some sessions and others’ endurance.
9. BOOSTS YOUR RESTING METABOLIC RATE
Every person has a resting metabolic rate, which refers to the calories that your body requires while in a resting state. It needs these calories to breathe, digest food and circulates blood, among other things.
When your resting metabolic rate is high, you burn more calories and eventually lose more weight.
Running often gives your resting metabolic rate a surge.
When you do it once, you only get this benefit once. However, if you run twice a day, you get to enjoy it twice.
This increases your energy consumption and hence your weight loss efforts.
10. FLUSHES OUT TOXINS
Whenever you run, it is common for you to accumulate lactic acid. This is because of anaerobic respiration that sometimes occurs.
Your body also eliminates certain waste products that you need to be removed for proper bodily functions.
A good way of eliminating these toxins is to go for a second run. The second run increases blood circulation in your muscles and removes whatever metabolic waste accumulated in the first run.
Running twice a day for a beginner can thus be an effective way of naturally dealing with your workouts’ byproducts.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Running twice a day is a smart way of achieving some of the benefits you would have obtained from running for a long time.
First, it enables you to cover greater mileage. No matter how you do it, total distance a day matters in increasing your stamina, fitness levels or in preparing you for competition.
It also has tremendous metabolic effects like fat burning and boosts your basal metabolic rate.
If you are looking to enhance your outcomes and achieve your running goals in a shorter time, try running twice a day.
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