Are doubles worth doing if you aren't getting 8 hours of sleep?

Probably more careers are cut short because of not getting enough sleep while training hard. Everyone requires a different amount of sleep, but everyone will always need more sleep when training hard. If you are going to increase your mileage, while at the same time getting less sleep, you are asking for trouble. One of the biggest reasons so many people improve a lot out of college is because they start getting more sleep as they increase their training(that is if they are at least a semi-professional runner and not having to work 50-60 hours a week).

I guarantee you that many people will respond that sleep is over rated, you only need 6 hours of sleep, more mileage is more important than sleep, etc., but it is pure physiology. Your body requires a certain amount of sleep and hard training makes your body require even more to recover properly.

Is there anyway you can add the mileage during your lunch hour? Also, you can always add more mileage on the weekends when you can get more sleep. There are ways of increasing the miles without losing sleep.

If you put in another thirty or forty miles a week, you will almost certainly become a faster distance runner, even if those miles come straight out of your sleep time. Does that mean it's worth it? That depends on your own personal goals and circumstances. When I was in my peak running years, I was putting in 100+ miles a week while also putting in long hours as a young lawyer at a big law firm. I became a pretty fast runner, but I was also chronically sleep-deprived, with a life that consisted of little more than working, running, and sleeping when I could. I'm confident that most runners would not choose that way of life, and I don't think that many should.

50-60 mpw seems like plenty for high school. What are you hoping for with doubling?

I like your idea of doing just one double a week. Maybe on one of the weekend days, so you can still get enough sleep? I wouldn't short myself on sleep. Especially as you're still growing/developing, sleep is important.

I didn't notice the little "(HS)." Don't skimp on sleep if you're still in high school. You'll have plenty of opportunities later on to abuse your body chasing improbable dreams.

What about if one only gets say, six hours of sleep, does a run, and then goes back to sleep afterwards? How different is that in terms of recovery/physiology.

I wouldn't lose sleep to get some morning jogs in, especially not in high school when your body really needs the extra sleep as it is. You don't really need to start doubling until you are running about 70 miles in singles anyway, so just lengthen your runs and/or lengthen your long weekend run if you even run one. If you still really want to run some doubles, do it on the weekend or sign up for an early period jogging class in your high school to get a PE credit.

so, the real question is, why are you only getting 6 - 7 hours of sleep? turn off the t.v., put away the wii and limit your computer time ... there you go, there is another 3 hours per day, 1 for running, 2 for sleeping.

As for myself, I am doing at least 70 miles in singles, and am a college student, so sleep is sometimes hard to come by.

mother clucker wrote:

so, the real question is, why are you only getting 6 - 7 hours of sleep? turn off the t.v., put away the wii and limit your computer time ... there you go, there is another 3 hours per day, 1 for running, 2 for sleeping.

No doubt. I did doubles for swimming in high school and my first year old college. Getting to the pool at 6 am sucked the big weenie, but it sure taught me to get my ass in bed. Kept me away from certain entertainment opportunities and since that was in the day of a 18 YO drinking age those opportunities were plentiful.

It's a matter of priorities. If working a sh*tty job at McDonalds to make money to buy do-dads you don't need is more important, then by all means skip the doubles because you need your sleep.