A double whammy

Most people don’t seem to make the time or have energy to work out even once a day. On the other hand, there are those, who try working out twice a day, and no, we’re not talking about athletes or professional body builders but laypersons in their quest for weight loss or guys, who want to get all beefy and muscular quickly. But is it advisable to do so? Experts give us their take...

SEARCH FOR QUICK RESULTS

Working out twice a day is not really recommended for a beginner or a layman who is starting his/her fitness journey. Ideally, working out twice a day is meant for the intermediate to advanced or a trained athlete, who has a solid foundation training for a good number of years and is under supervision, opines Swapneel Hazare, founder and owner of SHIELD. “I have come across individuals, who workout twice a day in my practice. Most of these people want an instant outcome or are desperate to lose weight. Sometimes, even though they’ve been told not to work out twice a day, they do tend to do that in search of quick results,” he recounts. They do get results but if the load isn’t monitored, they tend to get injuries from overuse of muscles and overtraining.

NOT MEANT FOR LAYPERSONS

Working out twice a day is meant for athletes and body builders. Sailendra S Raane, director at Fitness Division, RESET — Holistic Living Concepts, explains, “Normal people shouldn’t because their lifestyle and schedules are hectic and they don’t get enough sleep, nutrition and recovery. They think they will lose weight faster but they only focus on the exercise. If one wants results like fat loss or muscle gain, nutrition and rest, recovery and overload probation should be taken care of too.”

AN INDIVIDUALISTIC EXPERIENCE

Exercising twice a day consumes a lot of your energy hence, it is meant for healthy individuals or for people, who cannot give one hour at a stretch. They can do so by dividing it into 30 minutes twice a day. Breaking up your exercise into two sessions can enable you to put in the right intensity in each session that you might not be able to in one long session. However, people suffering from any medical conditions, injuries or are not fit enough to sustain two workouts, should avoid such an activity. Having said that, two workouts could also ease the strain that may be caused in one single session. So, it’s a very individualistic experience, says Shalini Bhargava, fitness trainer and director at JG’s Fitness Centre, adding that the workouts have to be done correctly and in a balanced way. 

She adds, “We have come across a lot of individuals who exercise twice a day. This is because working out two times allows them to get two different types of trainings, like one session could be weight training, Pilates or yoga and the other could be cardio, or any other combination. These workouts generally bestow fitness enthusiasts with better results. Injuries are bound to happen only when the technique or posture is wrong or is overused.” 

PRECAUTIONS TO TAKE

If one still wants to, Sailendra shares some advice: Ensure you’re having four meals properly, get enough sleep (eight to nine hours), keep a gap of eight hours between your workouts, do cardio in the morning and weight training in the evening. But do this for a period of three months, not for the entire year to achieve fat loss and keep the metabolism up. Also, don’t repeat working on the same muscles the next day. Work on different parts of the body each day. For those who want weight loss, they can cardio in the morning and weight training in the evening, that will help to lose fat faster as well but not weight train in the morning and evening. 

Shalini gives her tips saying perform the more vigorous workouts in the morning followed by performing recovery type workouts later. Taking small power naps and rejuvenating massages can do wonders to your body. Focus on intake of proper nutrition and stay hydrated at all times. One must ensure they are resting for at least a day in a week. Listen to your body as an exhausted body will most likely lose the form and be up for workout injuries.