Working out twice a day is a common practice for a handful of very dedicated fitness lovers. Exercising twice a day can have many benefits that can get really bolster a ripped and muscular physique faster than ever before.

Double boost in metabolism: During exercise, your body burns fat and calories at a faster rate. The same happens even after exercise. So obviously, exercising twice a day can double that rate, which means you will be burning fat twice as fast. When you divide a workout into two separate sessions on the same day, you burn more total calories than if the whole workout had been done at the same time.

Shorter workouts: By breaking up your routine into two sessions, you can go more intense during your workout without having to worry about dragging out the workout. Therefore, you can train with more overall intensity, which is key to new strength and muscle gains.

More energy: Forget coffee. A workout in the morning will wake up your central nervous system and make you feel more energized throughout the day. Enhanced blood flow and brain stimulation are the primary mechanisms by which a workout will leave you feeling alert and invigorated.

The biggest issue surrounding two-a-days is the potential for overtraining. Exercising twice a day can be quite a burden on the Central Nervous System and muscular system. If you are exercising twice a day, you should workout no more than 45 minutes per session. Exercising too long can release cortisol, a stress hormone that can break down precious muscle tissue and put on unwanted fat. You should divide your workouts between cardio and weights. If you train two muscle groups at two different times of the day, you run the risk of overtraining. For example, if you are doing chest in the morning and then triceps at night then this can be potential for disaster. After your chest workout, your body has already begun the recovery process. Working your chest hits your triceps. If you work triceps a few hours later then you can be overtraining since you indirectly worked your triceps earlier. You are overstimulating the muscle, especially when it has already begun recovery. The best way to separate it is to work two completely opposite muscles at two different time periods, such as upper body and lower body or chest and back. You don’t want to work muscles that were used earlier in the day.

The best way to do a two-a-day would be to do cardio in the morning and weights at night. That way you won’t risk overstimulating a muscle and you’ll be doing two different types of workouts. Regular cardio won’t stress your body that much and you should be able to have a good weight workout at night. However, if you lift hard in the morning then your muscles may too sore to do proper cardio, especially if you are doing legs.

Keep these points in mind when you decide if doing two-a-days are right for you. Some people will really benefit from this type of training routine while others may benefit from a more traditional approach. Working out twice a day can be good or bad depending on your genetics and approach to exercise. Remember, keep your workouts to a minimum but go intense and consume the proper nutrients throughout the day.