Pros and Cons of Two-a-Day Training

by Doug Jackson,M.Ed.,CSCS

Question:"Doug, I usually workout in the mornings for approx. 75 minutes or so. Because of work demands, I won't have as much time to workout in the mornings now. I've been considering two-a-day training, possibly splitting up my weight training and cardio. Does it matter in what order I do my cardio and weights during a morning and evening split? What do you think of two-a-days in general?" -Josh Venis

Answer:"Josh, if you can pull it off without getting burnt out, go for it. Personally, I've never been able to stick with two-a-days for a long time period because I either get mentally or physically burnt out. However, many successful athletes I know complete two-a-day training. There are benefits to it. Because each workout session is shorter, intensity will be higher. You will also get two metabolic boosts instead of one. Not to mention that you should also receive two testosterone and growth hormone spikes instead of one. These are all good.

Just pay attention to any signs of overtraining. You should be motivated to train. If motivation begins to wane, take a few days off until you get the itch to train again. If you want to be more scientific about it, track your resting heart measurement. It general, it should be pretty stable in the mornings. If you notice it jump up by four or more beats on consecutive mornings, this may be an indication that you are entering an overtrained state.

As always, your ability to recover from workouts is crucial. Achieving at least eight hours of sleep will be very helpful. Also, normally for athletes doing two-a-day training, I'd suggest they keep their carb intake high. Since you are striving for fat loss and are on a low to moderate carb diet, your recovery ability will not be maximized. This is just reality, but be aware of it. For your goals, keep protein intake high. Supplementation with L-Glutamine may also be beneficial.

Lastly, since fat loss is your goal, I'd suggest doing your cardio in the morning on either an empty stomach or a light pre-workout meal (due to your fat loss goal, avoid high sugar items prior to your workout/ use a BCAA combination like Glutamine Select or a protein shake to avoid muscle catabolism.) You can do your weight training in the evenings when you will be stronger and less injury prone. And of course variety is a good thing, so everyone once in a while don't be afraid to switch up the order and do your weight training in the morning and cardio at night. Good luck and keep me posted!" -Doug J.