Stairway to Heaven
We’re pretty sure that this was NOT what Robert Plant was singing about. But he should have been! Because the stair climber, which may not be the trendiest piece of gym equipment, is an effective way to strengthen and tone your lower body, to include your butt, thighs, hamstrings, and calves; and improve your balance and posture. In addition, stair climbing is great for your lungs and cardio vascular system.
Rewards of working out on the stair climber are well worth the effort. Why do you think so many high school and college coaches make their athletes run up and down bleachers? Or why do you think Rocky bounded up the stairs of the Philadelphia Museum of Art when he was getting into the best shape of his life? You don’t need to be gunning for a fight to enjoy stair climber machine benefits. Instead, jump on, start climbing, and enjoy!
BURN FAT
Big muscle groups burn a lot of calories, and stair climbers work some of the biggest muscles in your body. Research from Harvard Health Publishing has suggested that stair climbers can burn anywhere from 180 to 250 calories per half-hour workout session. The faster you go, the more calories you’ll burn. Additionally, you’ll burn a different amount of calories depending on a number of factors, including weight, age, and your metabolic rate.
STRENGTHEN/TONE YOUR LOWER BODY & CORE
The stair climber is an excellent means of improving the muscular endurance of your core and lower body, but only if you maintain good posture throughout the exercise. Use your core, including your abs, external obliques, and intercostals (muscles that help stabilize your upper body), to keep your chest up and your back straight. You may see other exercisers gripping the handles of the stair climber, hunched over as they read a magazine or check their email on their phone; they are doing themselves a huge disservice and lowering the stair stepper benefits. Instead, by keeping strong form, you can sculpt your lower body, tightening up and strengthening your glutes, thighs, quads, hamstrings, and core.
CARDIOVASCULAR FITNESS
After just a few minutes on the stair climber, you’ll learn quickly why this is such a good cardio workout: Stair climbing, which is easy on the joints, raises your heart rate immediately, so with a 20 minute workout you'll likely spend 19 minutes with an elevated heart rate, which is perfect for maximizing your cardio benefits. Climbing stairs will strengthen your heart and lungs, forcing them to become more efficient each time you perform a stair climber workout. Not only will you improve your overall aerobic fitness, but you may also improve your heart health.
FUNCTIONAL FITNESS
We at Success Studio, are big fans of functional fitness. “Functional” or “natural” movement, means that it mimics movements you perform in everyday life. Integrating functional movements into your workout routines can extend that quality of life into your golden years so you can live life on your own terms by tackling any flight of stairs as you age gracefully!
IMPROVED BALANCE & COORDINATION
Sticking with the theme of maintaining a good quality of life, stair climbing can also improve your balance and coordination, which will help you stay mobile for longer. Each time you climb a stair, you are briefly balancing on one leg. Stair climbing also recruits stabilizer muscles in your foot and ankle to keep yourself balanced.
IMPROVE POSTURE
Even though you might feel all the burn in your legs, when you use the stair climber, your core also activates in order to keep you balanced and upright while you’re walking up the levels. Having a strong core not only feels great but it helps with better posture, everyday balance, stability, and decreases your chance of injuries.
EASY ON THE KNEES
A stair climber is a relatively low-impact cardio alternative, especially if you maintain a moderate pace so that you aren’t jogging or running up the stairs. You can also use the handlebars to take a little weight off your lower body.
OFFERS MAY DIFFERENT WORKOUTS
Once you are comfortable climbing stairs at a moderate pace on the climber, it’s time to get creative. Stair climbers offer different stair climbing programs you can use, but that’s only the beginning of incorporating a stair climber into your workout.
You can up the ante by performing side steps, skipping steps, or walking backward to activate different parts of your muscles and challenging your coordination. You can also perform:
Squat steps – Squat to parallel on the stair climber and slowly climb while maintaining the squat position. Your quads will burn in the moment but thank you later.
Sumo steps – Take exaggerated steps to the right and left as you walk on the stair climber to work the outer glute and thigh.
Alternate leg raises – As you step up with one leg, kick the alternate leg behind you. Squeeze your glute at the top of each kick. This will add extra glute work to your stair climber workout and activate your lower back.
So the next time you walk past the stair climber on your way to the treadmill, turn around and try the stepper. The benefits it can offer make the climbing cardio machine worth a try.
If you want to learn some creative stair climber workouts, or if you just need to know the lyrics to the iconic Led Zeppelin song, Stairway to Heaven, Success Studio’s trainers can help you. Just click the button below.