If any coach had only three words to strike fear in the hearts of players, they would use “two a days”. Every player dreads them, every coach seems to love them, no matter the sport. Yet, as time passes, the reasoning for two a days can get lost with players. In head wrestling coach Michael Jernigan’s eyes, they are a vital part to the season.

“Two a day’s are important to us because we don’t have to take time out of practice to run,” Jernigan said. “We have the opportunity of coming in, doing our conditioning in the morning, […] The key is now when we go to practice in the afternoon, we just wrestle.”

Jernigan went on to say that with two a days, waking up early in the morning helps simulate a Saturday morning tournament. Another bonus for the players is the extra conditioning at the beginning of the season leads to having shorter practice times at the end of the season.

From a coach’s standpoint, two a days are a great asset to the team, but it’s the athletes that have to get on board. Senior swim team captain Ben Kerby has bought in to the benefits of two a days and sees what they brings for the swim team.

“Two a days are important because it gives you get that extra water time you need in order to achieve at any meets or the state level,” Kerby said. “Morning practices focus more on your skill and the fundamentals of swimming while afternoon practices are just the brute swim.”

That being said, Kerby has noticed the challenges the early morning practices can bring for players.

“Waking up is very hard and it makes me think about if I should be swimming or not,” Kerby said. “If you’re going to go into a sport that has two a day’s you have to be ready and prepared to wake up that early and be prepared to work as hard as you can at five to seven in the morning.”