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When One Run a Day Just Isn’t Enough

Most top runners run twice a day most days. This isn’t as crazy an undertaking as it might sound.

Running twice a day (a.k.a. doubling) is a simple way to increase your mileage. Just three additional short runs a week will boost your weekly mileage by more than 10.

Here’s the potentially counterintuitive thing about doubling: it can be a less taxing way to increase your mileage than making all of your runs longer. At some point, adding to individual runs can mean finishing most of those runs a little too fatigued. That’s especially undesirable if your form starts to deteriorate, at which point the pounding of running will take more of a toll. By splitting some days’ running into two sessions, you spread that stress over more time and are more likely to have good form throughout the day’s mileage. If you’re to where you’re running an hour or most days, breaking some of those days into two runs will leave you fresher while giving you the same fitness benefits.

Alison Wade