Can I split my workout into two parts each day?

December 1, 2008 10:44 AM

Can I split my daily workout into two parts?

My wife and I have been trying to get back in shape and since we're not able to get to a gym due to our baby, we're working out at home.

We've been doing the P90x series since it's simple and uses equipment we already have. I've dropped about 30 pounds since starting it two months ago and soon we'll be ready to rest from it for the holidays and restart a new round in January. We've found that the 60-90 minutes at night is hard to do while jocking with our child as she awakes every so often.

To whit, we thought of splitting each workout into two sections and do have in the morning and half in the evening. Will that make the workout less effective? Bad idea or good idea? Anyone? Bueller?

posted by damiano99 to health & fitness (9 comments total)

If that's a routine you can stick to it'll be more effective than one you can't.
posted by jon_kill at 10:57 AM on December 1, 2008 [2 favorites has favorites]

Lately I've seen a lot of talk about two shorter workouts a day, usually one morning and one evening, being more effective than one long workout once a day. Here's an article that takes a more cautious view towards the idea, but at the very least it seems like you aren't going to lose any effectiveness by splitting the routine into two sections.
posted by elfgirl at 11:01 AM on December 1, 2008

I think it's a great idea. I like doing two short workouts, one in the morning and one in the evening, as long as the evening one is not right before bed. Getting that heart rate up twice as opposed to once will definitely aid in weight loss and cardiovascular health. Finishing a workout leaves you recharged and full of energy. You just accomplished something hard and now you can take on the world. Why not feel like that twice in one day?
posted by vito90 at 11:06 AM on December 1, 2008

Caveat: Cardio can be split into two sessions. Be cautious splitting up weight training sets, though. Most weight training "routines" are structured as a flow from larger to smaller muscle sets to ensure all the muscles are worked and to minimize the risk of injury. Splitting that type of routine up could be bad. (IANATrainer and IANYT--this is based on my experience and research into weight training regimens for my own use.)
posted by elfgirl at 11:11 AM on December 1, 2008

There are lots of folks that split cardio and weights. My schedule doesn't really allow it, but I'd say that doing cardio first thing in the AM and then weights in the afternoon / evening would be a good split.

So cardio in the AM Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday.

Weights in the PM Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday.

Take Wednesday off. Do any leg exercises Tuesday PM so that they can recover on Wednesday and you don't beat them up with cardio.
posted by charlesv at 11:27 AM on December 1, 2008

Oh hell yes you can split it up. There's two main benefits: you can recover a little and you get two metabolism boosts per day. Your body doesn't just go back to its rest metabolic rate when you stop exercising; for the next hour or so it tapers back. So, getting yourself revved up twice, you get the same full-effort burn, plus a double shot of taper burn.

(anecdotal: I swam in the mornings, ran at lunch, and rode in the evenings for about a month earlier this year. Ate like a pig, and still dropped 15 pounds. I tried to do all three in a row *one*day* and it just about killed me.)
posted by notsnot at 11:31 AM on December 1, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]

Not quite the question being asked, but...

If you already have all the equipment to do p90, have you considered trying crossfit instead? www.crossfit.com. Free daily workouts. You will see the same results you get from a p90x style workout, while the workout usually only takes 20-25mins + warmup time.
posted by ShootTheMoon at 11:33 AM on December 1, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]

Cardio should be the first part, weights the second. The idea is to make sure that there is a lot of blood flow to the muscles after weight training, to make it easier for the muscles to rebuild stronger. Weight training is tearing your muscles up, causing your body to respond by building them bigger. If you do cardio after weights, the blood goes to respiration duties instead of rebuilding ones.
posted by Ironmouth at 11:47 AM on December 1, 2008

Got it. Resolved! Thanks!
posted by damiano99 at 10:17 PM on January 5