Is running a mile in the morning and one at night as effective as just running a straight 2 miles?
Posted by Ray Gill
Filed under Running Answers
I ask because running a mile is tolerable for me so I decided to run one in the morning and one at night for a total of two miles a day.
I don’t think I could possibly last trying to run 2 miles straight.
Is it a lot less effective then if I just ran them straight?
Or is it basically the same thing?
If there’s a difference, how much of a difference is there?
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If you are talking about burning calories then it is practically the same.
If you are talking about cardiovascular conditioning then it is not the same.
So if you are just trying for general health then splitting your mileage is fine.
if you are running for weight loss, there isnt much of a difference.
however, if you are running for endurance, it will not be effective. doing half your run in the morning and half at night is like playing the first half of a soccer game, taking a 10 hour break, and then playing the second half. it isn’t the same as playing a full game because your body has time to rest and recover.
For a serious runner, its been proven that doubles are just as beneficial as running the whole workout together.
but on another note, running 1 mile isnt accomplishing much anyway.. Its not enough to get you in shape, and does nothing for fat burning
They are very different. If you can keep a high pace on 1 mile it will train your ANAROBIC capacity (going hard for a short period of time). Where as going 2 miles will train your AREBIC capacity (pacing for longer).
First off it would probably be better to run 2-4 times a week for longer (2 miles at first to whatever you feel capable of… push yourself a little, pain is a good thing.) You need a day in between to recover so that your body can restore its muscles.
If you are training FOR anything, it is best to duplicate the racing situation as much as possible. For example: a 5 mile race should be accompanied with 5 mile training 2-4 times a week to prepare your body.
Hope it helps,
I asked this exact same question and the responses were mostly the same. If you want to build endurance run the straight 2miles, just to tone do the 1mile in the morning and one at night.