High Steppin' in the SpRiNg

Have you ever taken it to the stairs?

As a Fight for Air Climb veteran, I have been taking it to the stairs every spring since my first Climb (in 2013). Did you know the simple act of climbing stairs mimics running hills (on steroids)?

Of course, the incline of a (man made) stairway is usually a bit more steep than a simple (naturally occurring) hill you 'd find on the countryside or in your own town. In my humblest of opinions, that's what makes the challenge of running stairs even greater!


In recent weeks, I have been doing weekly stair workouts...not just for awesome cardio and lower-body strength, but also in prep for the Fight for Air Climb (Des Moines, IA on April 9th). Although my training has me in constant motion for 20-40 minutes, on event day my actual climbing time will be substantially shorter (last year, my finish time was 18:53). Also, on event day, I will be climbing four entire buildings, from the bottom to the top...not going up and down several times on a single flight of stairs.

Alas, here's five recent stair workouts that have left me winded (but exhilarated), sore (but ever stronger), and exhausted (but high on endorphins). Care to give any or all of them a try?

1 - Stella vs. 'Milly Interval Extravaganza Workout
I created this workout after spending too much time on my treadmill (her name is 'Milly). I incorporated intervals of treadmill running with a "pyramid" intervals on my stairway (and her name is Stella).

*10 sets of steps (one set = going up one flight and then coming back down)

*1/4 mile on the treadmill (incline on 2, pace set at 6.0)

*15 sets of steps

*1/4 mile on the treadmill (same as above)

*20 sets of steps

*1/4 mile on the treadmill (same as above)

*15 sets of steps

*1/4 mile of the treadmill (same as above)

*10 sets of steps 

*cool down (I walked for 5 minutes, but adjusted the pace setting to 4.0)

2 - Outdoor Elongated Stairway Challenge

I discovered a "little" gem of a stairway on the college campus near my house recently.  My indoor stairway has 12 steps and they're probably pretty "typical" in their depth and height. in comparison to other indoor stairways. This outdoor stairway has 18 steps, and they are elongated.....the incline is not as steep as an indoor stairway, and the steps themselves are longer in depth. In other words, single-stepping on these is closer (in stride-length) to double-stepping on a "regular" stairway, and taking the steps by two's is similar (in stride-length) to taking the steps by three's.  This really gave my long legs a challenge!

  

3 - Fast & Effective Stair Workout
If you're short on time, this workout will give you a good lower-body burn in approximately 20 minutes. I'm a tall gal (5'9), so "double-stepping" is pretty easy for me, and the "triple-stepping" is more of a slower, controlled balance move. For people with shorter legs, simply substitute the doubles for singles, and the triples for doubles.

4 - Arms & Legs Intervals on the Stairway
This is another interval workout that incorporates maneuvers both on and off the stairway. I did this workout on the outdoor stairway, which has the 18 elongated steps(mentioned above), but it could also be done inside on an indoor stairway.

5 - Strength-Based Balance-Burner Stair Workout

Interested in some intense balance moves? How about some fancy foot work? This workout involves double steps (for speed) as well as triple steps for strength and balance. The triple steps are performed at a much slower speed, due to the increased stride length required to perform them. This workout also adds a new element...side-stepping (instead of facing the stairs head-on, you climb while facing the handrail and alternate that with facing the wall). 

Some notes:

**I recommend a warm-up of some sort. A few minutes of power walking would suffice, as well as a bit of foam rolling on your quads, hammies and calves.

**Do the steps however you wish. Being tall, I always do doubles (taking the steps "by two's"), but periodically mix in a few sets of triples (you guessed it, taking the steps in 3-step intervals...these are a much slower, more controlled move).

**It can get difficult to keep accurate count of the steps; something that helps me is alternating which foot I start with...on all the "odd" sets, I start with  my right foot (r-i-g-h-t has 5 letters, which is an odd number) and on the "even" sets, I start with my left foot (l-e-f-t has 4 letters, which is an even number). Pure genius, I know. I wish I had the patent for that coding system.

What do you think? Care to give these a try? have you ever used stair-climbing as part of your cardio routine? 

As a side note, I should mention that the Fight for Air Climb is a national event with numerous venues across the United States and is affiliated with the American Lung Association. I have participated in the Des Moines venue four times (2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016) and the Chicago venue once (2014). I have a passion for daily fitness, fun events (that are also challenging) and fresh air...and this event encompasses all of those. Also, I have known several people (who are former smokers) that have kicked butt (literally). My late mother-in-law was a lifelong smoker, and suffered from COPD in her later years....I climb in her memory every year. If you are interested, I do have a fundraising page for the 2017 Climb HERE .

I'm linking up with Meranda and Lacey and Rachel for their awesome Friday Five 2.0 Link-up. Today we're chatting about spring workouts....head over and see what's everyone's got to say about the matter.

I'm also linking with Nicole for her  Fit and Fashionable Friday link-up.