Is climbing stairs good for your health?
Climbing stairs is good for health if it’s done the right way. But still, most people don’t climb stairs correctly.
It was once believed that climbing stairs burn as many calories as running a 5km/h speed on a flat surface. However, this myth has been busted because you burn more calories running at an average speed of 10km/h than climbing the same number of steps as running slowly. In other words, if you run or jog 20 minutes on a treadmill at the gym, you’ll burn around 500 to 800 calories whereas climbing up and down 60 sets of the 3-story buildings will give you about 600 to 800calories. It means that climbing 240 sets would be equivalent to running 10km.
While most people go home from the gym being tired and exhausted, climbing stairs build a lot more endurance than just running or jogging. Climbing stairs also strengthens your legs and makes them look leaner – especially if you have a desk job that keeps you seated for 8 or 10 hours a day.
This is because climbing stairs involves going up and down between each floor which means no matter how many times you see your office as some kind of “ground”, you can’t avoid stair-climbing movements.
What does climbing stairs do for your body?
Climbing stairs is a great aerobic exercise, which means your body uses oxygen to produce energy. This slows the build-up of lactic acid in muscles and reduces post-exercise muscle soreness. Climbing stairs can also strengthen your heart and lungs as well as many of the muscles in your legs, hips, and back.
Climbing stairs is also useful for building strong bones. Climbing stairs use more than one-third of the major muscles in your body, so it’s an efficient way to strengthen them all. Every step you climb burns approximately 0.1 calories, which adds up quickly if you climb multiple floors. Stair climbing is considered a weight-bearing exercise because each foot sinks into the stair below as the opposite leg pushes uphill.
This works muscles that normally don’t get much attention from running or exercising on flat terrain. The most common complaint about climbing stairs is that it makes the calves sore but this shouldn’t keep people from making multiple trips up and down the stairs.
Does climbing stairs burn calories?
Yes, climbing stairs can help you burn off some extra calories. A 180-lb person burns 51 calories climbing up the stairs for 5 minutes. If that same person climbed back down the stairs it would be considered a “negative calorie” activity and they would actually burn 50 calories doing this!
Negative calorie activities are any exercise where your body uses more energy (calories) than it takes to perform the activity. However, the benefits of climbing stairs are only limited to these scenarios. Here are some ways that you can burn calories by climbing stairs.
How many calories does climbing stairs burn?
It takes an estimated 184-lbs person between 18 and 23 minutes to climb 50 flights of stairs (the equivalent of burning 325-400 calories) depending on their pace. If you weigh 180 lbs, it will take an average of 26 minutes to complete 50 flights of stairs, which burns 51-68 calories per flight*5minutes= 300Calories, but if you climb down too its -50 Calorie so it +150 Calories burned by simply going up and down the stairs for 5 Minutes.
This means that up the stairs at a quick pace, you can burn up to two pounds of fat in one month. There are factors that may significantly affect the number of calories burned while climbing stairs. For example, fast climbers will burn more calories than slow ones. If you take 1,000 steps per minute then you will be able to climb 70 flights of stairs every hour (the equivalent of burning 1,350 calories).
Slow paces are not very efficient because it takes approximately 3 minutes to climb a floor and only burns 68-82 calories.
What does climbing stairs do for weight loss?
Climbing stairs at home or the office is one of the simplest ways to burn calories, lose weight and improve overall cardiovascular fitness. Stair climbing creates high-intensity interval training (HIIT) which is useful for improving endurance. HIIT is an effective workout strategy because it combines bursts of intense aerobic effort with brief recovery periods that maximize fat-burning potential during exercise by removing this energy source as stored glycogen becomes depleted.
Stair climbing is particularly difficult for fit people because you are forced to carry your body weight on your legs more than usual. Stairs can also be used as a substitute for jogging or running when weather conditions are poor or there are no safe places to run. To summarize our answer: Climbing stairs helps you lose weight by increasing the number of calories burned during exercise.
Is climbing stairs good for calves?
Climbing stairs is a great way to build and tone your calf muscles. Climbing stairs work your hamstring and glutes as well, but the primary focus of this exercise will be on the calves. This type of leg workout also helps improve ankle flexibility and mobility which can help you avoid tripping or falling due to weak ankles.
Elliptical machines can provide a good overall lower body leg workout, but climbing stairs is even better because it gives you an upper-body workout too. Climbing stairs gives you slightly different benefits from walking up steps, so there’s no reason why you’d have to pick just one if you want to do both for a complete workout. Just keep in mind that walking up steps takes a lot less time than climbing the entire flight of steps.
Is climbing stairs good for your bum?
The short answer is yes, but there are a couple of catches. Every activity from running to cycling will improve the health of your gluteal muscles (your bum), so climbing stairs is just one of many options.
The problem with climbing stairs however is that it puts uneven pressure on your knees and hips. Climbing up or down while you’re pushing off with only one leg will put less stress on your joints than if you were using both legs to climb. If you want to try and benefit from climbing stairs frequently, which isn’t exactly an easy thing for most people to fit into their lives, make sure that whatever surface you use has even ground, or else this exercise won’t be quite as good for you! And if the stairs are outdoors (downhill) make sure you don’t try and climb them too fast or else risk tripping, falling down the stairs, and potentially injuring yourself.
Climbing stairs will give your glute muscles a great workout but make sure you take care of your body before, during, and after the activity to ensure that you stay safe!
Is climbing stairs good for abs?
Everyone who has ever done a sit-up knows that it works your abdominal muscles. But does climbing stairs work your abs too? The answer is yes, but not so much. Climbing stairs is similar to doing leg raises while laying on the floor. Your abs contract to raise the upper body from the floor and keep you balanced. But there are better ways to strengthen your stomach muscles using a machine or a workout routine specifically designed for this purpose. So, if you really want to get that six-pack of abs you see in magazines, look elsewhere!
Is climbing stairs good exercise during pregnancy?
Climbing stairs is an excellent exercise to do when you are pregnant. It provides the benefit of lower body weight-bearing aerobic movement which strengthens the leg muscles and improves cardiovascular endurance. Any activity during pregnancy that gets your heart rate up for at least 30 minutes a day on most days of the week can be called aerobic exercise or cardiovascular exercise. This type of exercise provides various health benefits to both mom and baby including:
1. protecting against gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia, high blood pressure, fatigue, backaches, and insomnia; also helps build stamina for labor! The more fit you are before your pregnancy begins, the easier it will be for you to adapt to the physical changes that occur during your pregnancy.
2. If you had a sedentary lifestyle before your pregnancy, starting an aerobic program earlier will allow enough time for your body to adapt and ensure safety for both of you before delivery.
In addition, it is best to avoid the exercise of any type after 36 weeks as it may increase the risk of hemorrhage or placental detachment from the uterus.
