Would running twice a day benefit me?

List age, gender, PRs, running history, injury history, work & family commitments if you want a legit reply.

If you are done with college and have a job that pays your bills I'd focus on that.

Female, 23, ran in hs & college. Never been seriously injured, just the occasional sore knee. 6k PR is 23:05, mile PR is 5:15. Currently putting in between 50-60 miles a week. I'm in grad school.

Yes, doubling is worth it. You should start by keeping the double very easy and short. Get yourself used to getting out an getting the secondary run in. Run it really slow. As your body gets used to it you will find that the double is actually easier than doing a single. All your runs will be easier and you will recover from runs much quicker. Double as often as you can. Pick the days you will double and double those days every week. It will make you better. Be patient and give it time. You won't regret it.

Awesome, thanks.

I agree with what Leddy Gee said, but you also need to figure out what works best for you. For me, I am a bit of an insomniac so doubling every day would cut back on my sleep if I get up earlier in the morning. I found that doing it 2-3 times a week works best with the morning run just being a recovery (slow) shake out of 3-5 miles. However, I only double if my week's mileage is over 50. I run 6 days a week, so 50 is all I can tolerate in singles.

Just out of curiosity, if one could hit their mileage goals in singles, would there be an added benefit to adding doubles anyways? Eg., if 50 miles was your max mileage, and you were able to accomplish this with 6 days of running, would it be more beneficial to have 2 shorter runs on some days just for the sake of adding doubles (while still maintaining 50 mile max)?

800Please wrote:

Just out of curiosity, if one could hit their mileage goals in singles, would there be an added benefit to adding doubles anyways? Eg., if 50 miles was your max mileage, and you were able to accomplish this with 6 days of running, would it be more beneficial to have 2 shorter runs on some days just for the sake of adding doubles (while still maintaining 50 mile max)?

You're not going to get a 100% definitive answer either way. But I believe it depends on the distance you're training for. The best part about doubles is that after you're used to them, they help you be more recovered. Running twice a day helps stimulate the release of HGH more so than running once a day. You will feel fresher and be able to have a higher quality. Frequency of running is as important as duration. You woudn't run 25 miles twice a week because running longer is better. So I see no reason why you shouldn't try to squeeze in some extra runs/run as many days in a row as possible.

800Please wrote:

Just out of curiosity, if one could hit their mileage goals in singles, would there be an added benefit to adding doubles anyways?

It depends on the individual and what your overall training schedule looks like. I'm long-distance inclined and training for a marathon, so breaking every day into 2 runs would be a pain in the a$$ for me. I feel like it's better (for me) to have at least 1 run of the day be an hour or more.

Thanks for your thoughts. I am mainly training for the 1500/mile. Would you say doubles are more important for longer or shorter distance runners?

Doubles are good but not at reducing your sleep. If you get more than 8+ hours go for it. If not getting 6 hours of sleep to slog 3 miles isn't worth it.

My sweet spot for mileage was 85 on mostly singles. But the years of doubles probably helped that. Find your sweet spot. When you do stay there.

I think that doubles might be better for the mile. You should ideally feel better and more recovered and be able to get more, harder efforts such as tempos in. Since endurance isn't "as" important in the mile in comparison to the 10k, running 10 miles a day at 7:30 pace isn't as beneficial as getting in an easier morning 4 mile @ 8:00 pace followed by a 6 mile run at 6:30 pace or better. That's just how I see it.

Yes. What you need to do is make one run really easy. Like you should be doing it at the pace a college athlete from another sport, with no running background could run it, at least at first. Don't cut your second, main run down in distance at all. You can gradually increase the length of your shorter run of the day and drop the pace over a few months as you get used to it. This will help you avoid getting over tired. You're right at the mileage I would recommend an athlete start doubling.

Abandon hope, all ye who enter here.

HGH? Doubles on 50 miles per week? Overtired?

Yeesh.

Beware wrote:

Abandon hope, all ye who enter here.

HGH? Doubles on 50 miles per week? Overtired?

Yeesh.

And where is your input?

Good point :)

Beware wrote:

Abandon hope, all ye who enter here.

HGH? Doubles on 50 miles per week? Overtired?

Yeesh.

And you're the reason we've posted on LetsRun. We want advice from sage and legendary runners/running experts like yourself. How else are we to become awesome? You are our only hope, please don't hold out on sharing with us your endless knowledge!

If you were hitting 50 in singles but wanted to add doubles, then the way to do that would be to increase your weekly mileage. I think the notion of a 'max mileage' that you settle on is kind of silly. If the goal is to get better, and you have the time and desire to double, then run more.

This might be useful

http://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?thread=6217092

Beware wrote:

Abandon hope, all ye who enter here.

HGH? Doubles on 50 miles per week? Overtired?

Yeesh.

There will never be a shortage of ignorant people who love to show it.