Running Stairs – The Most Badass Fat Loss Conditioning Drill… Ever!
24 Apr
Ever since I was a kid I remember being very winded when I had to climb up to the top of my building. And since lately I’ve been strapped for time, I decided to start running stairs when get home. I’d just run up to the last floor and take the elevator down to my apartment.
There are very few people that run stairs and also very few people that don’t get winded when they climb a 8-9 storey building. Working the stairs makes girls trim and sexy and the dudes lean and mean. This is why bodybuilders, soccer players, Shaolin monks and even Victoria’s secrets models keep their conditioning up with this drill
But many athletes such as basketball and soccer players, track athletes and martial artist include this drill in their conditioning. And for good reason. Running stairs kicks ass! It melts fat and conditions you to be efficient at short distance sprinting such as running to catch the bus, scrimmaging on the basketball field, or rushing to get to class on time.
Running Stairs Technique
- Step on every other step. I’ve found that it’s best to run stairs by skipping every other step. This manner of running ensures proper stride frequency and speed of running
- Use your whole body. running and climbing are whole-body movements. Engage all your muscles – not just the legs.
- Use the quads. Climb stairs by pushing with your thighs. Make sure not to completely extend your legs – this puts too much strain on your knees. Instead, run by keeping your legs semi-flexed throughout.
- The role of the posterior chain. The muscles of the back of your legs – calves, hamstrings (back of your thighs) and glutes (your butt) are responsible for most of the movement that occurs in running and jumping. Don’t make the mistake to push through your knees only. Instead, try to use your posterior chain and extend your hips. Here is a post I wrote on this subject: Glute Activation.
- Run on your toes. Just a quick note here – when running try to step on your toes or more specifically the place between your toes and your mid foot. That’s how all animals run – they step on their paws and on NOT their heels.
- Use your arms. Make sure to use your arms to help you with the movement. Keep your elbows in, shoulders down (not shrugged) and your arms semi-flexed (like a sprinter).
Progressive Overload
- Climb more stairs. The simplest way to increase the difficulty is to climb more storeys.
- Run more rounds. A better option is, instead of climbing more storeys, to increase the number of times you climb the stairs.
- Climb faster. Still better is to increase your speed. This will not give you more fat loss benefits, but will improve your conditioning level.
- Climb slow but with a backpack. Another option – for hardcore guys or gals only – is to climb slowly but with a weighted vest or backpack on.
Stair Climbing Action Plan
- Start small. Don’t rush it. Start with onle a few stairways and gradually increase your speed.
- Increase difficulty once you get fitter. You will soon adapt and climbing the stairs will get easier. At this point increase the difficulty so that you continue getting fitter.
- Add climbing stairs to your daily routine. I like to focus my training around my life and not the other way around. So evening when I get back from walking my Lab Lucky we sometimes go for a sprint up the building stairway. I don’t think he appreciates having to climb a nine storey building LOL.
[Here's a documentary showing the hard training Shaolin monks have to go through every single day. Running stairs is a staple of their routine.]
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I actually havent ran stairs since track practice in JR high. I think Ill add it to my workouts this week. Should be BRUTAL
Justin,
yeah bro, it’s quite brutal at the top of my 9-storey building. And my lab Lucky doesn’t feel too happy having to climb after me either haha…
Give it a go if you got access to stairs – quick and easy workout and you feel the effect almost immediately. Speed and endurance go up after 3-4 workouts…
Yavor
[Here's the little goofball hoping we ain't gonna run stairs tonight lol. Keep dreaming buddy haha]
I don’t know how I missed this. I remember doing bleachers back in high school during off season football training. Never before have I puked so much in my life. It’s really a great way to build up some athleticism and endurance. However I find these can become dangerous when we are fatigued. Nice post.
Terrific post, Yavor! Love running the ‘stadium’ stairs at my son’s old school…you’re right on target: best all-round conditioning drill and it’s FREE!
Thanks!
F.
JC,
no doubt bleachers are great to develop athleticism for football players. And yeah, one can get carried away and trip on those stairs so watch out when you are fatigued. I myself just do one round to the top of the building and go home so no danger here.
Fred,
Yeah bud, running on the stadium is a better alternative because you get the benefit of fresh air. Some of the best things in life are free – the sun, the summer evenings, body weight training, fresh water when you are thirsty…
Great comments guys!
Yavor
Yavor-
Great article! Makes me wanna throw on my workout clothes and go run the LSU stadium steps! LOL! Kidding, because i’m beat, but still…I still wanna tackle em! Also, the fun things other than running up ‘em that you can do!
Yours in Health,
Sarah
Sarah,
haha yeah there are all kinds of evil drills you can do on the stadium stairs. I remember being unable to walk down from my apartment after stairway drills at the stadium for my basketball practice…
Good stuff!
Yavor
Great Post Yavor,
Stairs are a killer, but a killer workout. If I had the guts I would definitely run them more often because they are such a simple and effective workout. Whats even better is they can also be performed as HIIT. By the way how do I make it so my picture comes up when I comment. Is that through subscribing via RSS?
oh yea and I just posted an article on alcohol on my website if you want to check it out. Tell me what you think.
Arya,
thanks for pointing me to your latest blog post booze and lose – great headline btw!
To answer your other question – to get a picture – go to gravatar.com and register there with the same email you use to post to blogs. The just upload a pic there…
As for subscribing by RSS – it doesn’t have anything to do with the pictures but I still encourage it LOL
Cheers,
Yavor
Yay!, I do this every weekend either one day or both if I can for 20-30 mins. I contribute this routine for my very sexy backside
I run 5 flights at a local college building and I alternate running every step with running every other step. I did this yesterday but after reading this article I regret not doing it today also. I don’t do it during the week because there are too many people around so I’ll have to wait till Saturday. I truly love running stairs it makes me feel strong, fit and accomplished!
Kxm24,
Running stairs def makes girls’ backsides sexy
Way to go, girl!
Cheers,
Yavor
[Christina Milian is known for running stairs to stay sexy]
DDDUUUUUUUDDDDDEEEE!!!!
That shaolin video is fricking AWESOME!
Love it
Caleb
Caleb,
yeah buddy – I love this documentary. I embedded the whole 5-part series.
Hi
I live in India. I’m a fat guy trying to loose fat. I’m healthy overall though, have not had any health issues so far but I know it will start in the latter years if I don’t do something about it now. I just recently started working out AGAIN. Running stairs has helped a lot. I feel better conditioned. And yeah, since the age of 14 or 15 I had developed AWESOME definition and muscle on my lower body. My legs are perfect, really. It’s because I cycled a lot to school and tution’s and my legs had to carry my heavy upper body
. even some of the best bodies in the gym don;t have the legs I got. So now I’m mainly focusing on my upper body. I walk up bout 6 floors a day but need to get more disciplined in the way I do it. I include stair walking into my regular activities and not as an individual activity that i set up. Basically instead of taking the elevator to my 6th floor office I just walk it up. saves time and you get a great workout.
Thanks for this article. It really helps. You guys are blessing to people like me. Thanks and keep up the great work!!
Joshi
Joshi,
keep training hard man – soon you will have a great upper body in addition to the muscular legs.
Cheers,
Yavor
Hi,
Good article, i do run stairs everyday , a flight of 16 steps. Since i have no access to apartments or places where a chain of stairs are present. I climb up and down the 16 stairs for some 10 counts . is that the right way of doing it
Stephen,
you are doing good buddy! Just make sure to mix it up from time to time and make the workout harder by using some of the methods outlined here.
Cheers,
Yavor
wow that Shaolin monks video is incredible, such discipline…
Hi
I have been doing stair sessions about once a week for a couple of months now, and they are hard! A friend introduced me to them. There’s a university near my work that has a building with 12 floors- we go up and down (the down being a bit of recovery, so its an excellent interval training method). I do between 7-8, he does 8-10, but he’s really fit- professional water skier and can run 10km in about 35min. Its all over in about 25min or so, but its hard!! Good form of cross training- I like to mix it up constantly so I don’t get bored. Great site by the way, just found it today…
Cheers
Anna
Anna,
sounds like you guys are quite fit! The biggest challenge is the mental struggle to start climbing again after you are back from the top. My building is 9 floor high…
Kieran,
the monks are bad ass, ain’t they
I really enjoy this documentary btw – that’s why I’ve created a playlist for all the parts here.
Yavor
Running up stairs, got it. But running back down? Isn’t that hard on one’s knees? Do you recommend stairs only where there’s an elevator? I would love the convenience of doing stairs at home.
Thanks!
Lor,
I personally only run up the stairs. Just use an elevator or walk down the stairs, instead of running. Hope that helps!
Yavor
hi,
i have roughly 22 stairs i my house. it comes in a set of 4 ans 2 sets of 9 i was wondering if ishould run up them, walk back down then run up them again and do this for 1-20 mins?
i would love a respons
Yes – but make sure you start slow and gradually increase the time over a period of a few weeks. Also – if you have a lot of weight to lose, be careful with runing stairs. Maybve just start with walking. And above all – cut back on the food you eat. It is far easier to lose weight by eating less than by exercising more.
Good luck!
hi me again
lol im not over weight but i do eat alot of fruit and veges each day.
imthinking of doin a fast stair climb then a slow then a fast then a slow and so on.
ill do this fo 10 mins
do you think tis is a good idea?
Yes – but after a few weeks I suggest you increase your total workout time to 20 minutes!
Cheers,
Yavor
Hi Yavor
…Though there is a a big pinch of fat under my navel..
It’s been sometime since i visited…
I have tried out intermittent fasting and its been great..
Strangely I lost some of fat from my face and thighs and there’s not much difference in my waist…yeah but many tell i got a good six pack
For the first time in two years since i started training,i find a small drop in my enthusiasm for working out…and also eating good foods…started taking a little junk lately…as people start appreciating my body…To start with i was a bony 46 kilo
at 5.9′ inches…slowly i am now at 70 kilo…but still my muscle size is not big…
Your work here motivates me a lot. Thanks!
VJ,
it is normal to lose motivation after you achieve your goals. Why don’t you set a new goal
Yavor
Would doing this with burpees and heavy bag training be sufficent enough to get a good cardio workout in, or would I need more? Sample workout:4 two minit rounds on bag, 2 sets of max burpees and stairs till I feel like passing out or puking
Oh man, no kidding – these are definitely a badass exercise, not to be underestimated!
I had the perfect long staircase before I moved to Hollywood… now I’m in pursuit of a similar set but haven’t had success just yet
Craig,
yea man – finding a suitable staircase can be tough – but worth it!
Y.
Running stairs has helps a lot in weight lose…but i can’t even walk propely due to pain in joints…do you have any alternate to lose weight with some exercise that i can try?
Cho Yung Tea,
your best bet is to use walking plus strict calorie restriction. So for the most part weight loss will come from decreasing your food intake. Check out this post for tips one this:
http://relativestrengthadvantage.com/eat-stop-eat-how-to-lose-fat-and-preserve-your-muscles-without-traditional-dieting/
Thanks Yavor, That really helps me, thank you! I try running the stairs and it is going well… I’ve lost 1 pound this week from it
Cho Yung Tea,
you will lose weight even faster, if you cut down on the food – try eating a very small dinner for example.
Yavor, what do you suggest. I’m coming off a back injury and finally am able to start working out. Any specific type of stairs exercise?
If it’s a lower back injury, I suggest
1. doing planks to strengthen the abs, which in turn willl protect the back.
2. no running – simply climb the stairs up and take the elevator down
3. decrease the food to lose weight.
Thanks for the great advice on running stairs. I’ve been eyeing these posts for some time… I haven’t had issues with needing to lose weight, and I haven’t really exercised for most of my life. Needless to say, I’m out of shape. I think I want to start by walking up and down stairs. There’s a building with 7 floors, 17 steps each floor… Can you recommend a good length of time for me to walk up and down, as a beginner? Should I track time in minutes, or should I count how many times I go up and down? Thanks so much for all your help, the posts here are very motivating!
Sammi, sounds like your building is perfect. Here’s what to do:
start climbing the 7 floors once every day, six days per week. Don’t count or track time, just climb once. The second week, try to climb twice. If its super hard, postpone it until the third week, etc. Once you can climb comfortably 2-3 times (which is quite a workout in itself), you may start running. Hope that helps,
Yavor
Yavor,
That helps tremendously, thank you! I’ll follow what you’ve laid out, and keep you posted on the progress. Thanks again!
Dude, running stairs is awsome. I injured myslef a while back and put on all this weight. I just recently started running and watching what i eat. Found this awsome set of stairs in a park. Down 25 pounds got another 20 pounds to go.
Grant, they rule, don’t they? Also – I’m sure you’ve noticed how much of a difference food makes. A simple thing like eating a very light dinner can add up to thousands of calories less per week…
Keep kicking ass!
Yavotr
Grant- Congratulations on your big success! That’s very exciting! How long did it take before you saw those results?
Yavor- I started walking the stairs this Monday. After going up once, I felt a bit winded, but not too challenged, so I went up and down again. A total of 242 steps! I figured I’d do it twice for 6 days, then increase the reps by 1 each week, or as I was able. I did it again yesterday . By evening my calves were so tight and painful!! =•D Any time I sat still for a few minutes, my muscles would stiffen up so badly. Painful to walk, everything. But I’m fine. I’ll keep going. I’m skipping today. But will be back at it tomorrow. And definitely will be going up and down only once!!
Yavor- Yeah, and changing to a healthier diet has introduced me too some amazing food that I would have never tried. Way better then the crap I was eating, haha.
Sammi- Thanks, it is exciting, took me long enough to get motivated though. I’ve been at it for 2 months, but i just started the stairs a couple days ago. Starting out small and increasing the reps as you feel the need to be more challenged is the best way to go. This prevents you from burning yourself out and making it hard to be motivated. Goodluck tm with the stairs:)!