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How many times have you opted to squeeze into a crowded elevator rather than take the stairs? If you are like most people, the answer is, “a lot!”. Stairs symbolize unnecessary drudgery. In any big city, telling someone that you live in a walkup apartment will evoke sympathy.
Stairs get a bad rap, but they are an important weapon in your battle against the bulge. Depending upon your gender, weight, and physical condition, running stairs can burn close to 1,000 calories per hour. To burn 1,000 calories, you’ll have to crank up the intensity to an 8 or 9 out of 10. But you don’t have to run so hard that your heart is leaping out of your chest for an hour to get the full benefit of stair workouts.
All you need is 30 minutes and a set of stairs to complete a killer workout. Choose one of the following workouts depending on your goals:
High Intensity Stair Repeats
Good for: Burning fat fast, improving cardio conditioning.
Workout: Climb up and down stairs at a medium slow pace for 3 minutes to warm up. Then, sprint to the top and down 5 times. Rest for 1 minute. Repeat intervals for 30 minutes.
Difficulty: 10 out of 10
Plyometrics
Good for: Increasing leg strength and power, increasing vertical jump, increasing speed.
Workout: Warmup for 2 minutes by climbing stairs at a medium slow pace. Then, complete:
20 tuck jumps
30 backward jumps off the bottom step
20 two legged jump up stairs
30 step lunge (2 steps at a time)
40 one-legged step jumps
Rest an repeat one more time.
Difficulty: 7 out of 10
Bodyweight Strength Training
Good for: Building muscle mass and leg strength
Workout: Jog up and down the stairs at a medium pace for 5 minutes to warmup. Then, complete the following:
20 one-legged bodyweight deadlifts
20 bodyweight squats
50 bodyweight standing calf raises
20 curtsy squats
30 walking lunges up the stairs
Rest and repeat one more time.
Difficulty: 5 out of 10
Do you include stairs as part of your workout routine? What are your favorite stair workouts?
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