With my current training program under the coach at my school, I am given the choice of what days I want to double in the mornings. Is there any difference/benefit to doing this on easy days vs. workout days? In my mind it seems to make more sense to double on the workout days, because that means less time on my feet on easy days and more time to recover. Is there a standard/accepted way to do this?
The days that end in "y".
Reptilians wrote:
With my current training program under the coach at my school, I am given the choice of what days I want to double in the mornings. Is there any difference/benefit to doing this on easy days vs. workout days? In my mind it seems to make more sense to double on the workout days, because that means less time on my feet on easy days and more time to recover. Is there a standard/accepted way to do this?
Depends on how many miles a week you run I suppose, but in my experience I doubled on hard days. I would do a morning shakeout of about 30 mins and do my workouts in the evening then easy or recovery pace the next day as a single. IMO, it largely depends on what you can handle without injury or accumulative fatigue. Lot's of people double every day, but at that time I was only doubling 3 to 4 times a week.
I have been doubling 2 days a week on whichever days my schedule allows, and my workouts are sometimes in AM sometimes PM. So my double is all over the place, before/after the workout, or on the easy day . I have not seen a noticeable difference in recovery in any scenario.
Doubles two-three days a week is good, when mileage is 70 miles plus per week
On hard days, two days of easy a.m. runs can loosen up the body, which results in a better session later.
Ghost in France
I double on easy days and on short, fast workout days. If I'm doing 400's at mile/3k pace then a morning shakeout does wonders, like an extra bit of warmup. For tempos or longer intervals I might bag the morning run, especially if you haven't been doing doubles for long. Just keep the effort really relaxed on the morning runs.
Even if you can't follow malmo's advice you should just be doubling at every opportunity.
malmo wrote:
The days that end in "y".
By far the best answer.
When I double it's only on hard days. I run in the morning always so if I run some sort of speed session in the morning, I'll often go out for an easy 3-4 in the evening. This helps me legs recovery quicker.
In my mind it seems to make more sense to double on the workout days, because that means less time on my feet on easy days and more time to recover.
you are right.
make your hard days harder and your easy days easier.
double on your workout days and keep your easy days for recovery.
however, you should remember that the morning double is an easy run. it is not a workout.
cheers.
Ghost1 wrote:
On hard days, two days of easy a.m. runs can loosen up the body, which results in a better session later.
Ghost in France
This is what I would recommend. If you workout in the am you can double with a shakeout run in the PM.
Or, wake up and do an easy run in the AM with a PM workout.
Thanks for the answers. While I see merit in Malmo's advice, I'm only running 70-75 mpw, and doubling everyday would either put me way over my mileage or the doubles would only be able to be a mile or two. I really only need two a week, and that can be pushed to one if mileage is added to warmups/cooldowns on workout days.
Your loss. If you ever intend to double every day, the best time to start is NOW.
Doesn't matter how far you are running a week.
Reptilians wrote:
Thanks for the answers. While I see merit in Malmo's advice, I'm only running 70-75 mpw, and doubling everyday would either put me way over my mileage or the doubles would only be able to be a mile or two. I really only need two a week, and that can be pushed to one if mileage is added to warmups/cooldowns on workout days.
Why limit yourself to 70-75 miles a week?
To malmo, when you say "the days that end in 'y'," do you mean to suggest that everyone should be doing more mileage and should use doubles as a way to achieve that, or that everyone should run 12-14 times per week, regardless of mileage? Due to injury and other factors, I can't be getting above 60 miles per week until the summer. If I double 6 days per week, do a long run of 12 miles, have two workouts that total 8+ miles each, then that's 32 miles remaining...and about 10 runs. Do you suggest doing a lot of 3s and 3s? Or do you implicitly suggest all those running should be running 80+?
Gotta ask wrote:
To malmo, when you say "the days that end in 'y'," do you mean to suggest that everyone should be doing more mileage and should use doubles as a way to achieve that, or that everyone should run 12-14 times per week, regardless of mileage? Due to injury and other factors, I can't be getting above 60 miles per week until the summer. If I double 6 days per week, do a long run of 12 miles, have two workouts that total 8+ miles each, then that's 32 miles remaining...and about 10 runs. Do you suggest doing a lot of 3s and 3s? Or do you implicitly suggest all those running should be running 80+?
Start out doubling 2-3 days a week and go from there.
Gotta ask wrote:
To malmo, when you say "the days that end in 'y'," do you mean to suggest that everyone should be doing more mileage and should use doubles as a way to achieve that, or that everyone should run 12-14 times per week, regardless of mileage? Due to injury and other factors, I can't be getting above 60 miles per week until the summer. If I double 6 days per week, do a long run of 12 miles, have two workouts that total 8+ miles each, then that's 32 miles remaining...and about 10 runs. Do you suggest doing a lot of 3s and 3s? Or do you implicitly suggest all those running should be running 80+?
common sense is so rare these days
Depends on the physiology of the runner. Some runners do well with solid long sessions, like Kawauchi and others do better with shorter 40 minutes type runs, done several times a day, like Lismont, the former Belgian star.
Ghost in France
Ghost1 wrote:
On hard days, two days of easy a.m. runs can loosen up the body, which results in a better session later.
This is my experience. When I doubled with a very easy 4-5 miles in the morning, the hard session in the afternoon was easier. I felt less stiff, warmed up faster, and the workout generally went better.