Want to burn calories? Climbing stairs might be the most effective exercise for you

TOKYO (AP) — If you’re trying to lose weight and want a new way to do it, stair-climbing as a regular exercise — or just adding a few flights a day — might be for you. It’s accessible, and research shows it’s more effective than walking on level ground. “Overall, it is a fact that stair-climbing gets you fit faster and consumes more calories,” said Lauri van Houten, vice president of the International Skyrunning Federation, which oversees a wide range of disciplines that involve vertical climbing. This includes disciplines like mountain running above 2,000 meters (about 6,500 feet) or events like the Stairclimbing World Championships. These competitions are for the very fit, but we’re talking here about adding a few minutes of stair-climbing as a daily routine and raising awareness about its effectiveness for all ages. “How many calories will I burn is the question everyone wants to know,” van Houten said. Therefore, the more you weigh, the more you burn.” This article is part of AP’s Be Well coverage, focusing on wellness, fitness, diet and mental health. Even going down stairs you burn roughly five times more, the muscles being worked to slow the body’s descent. Dr. Alberto Minetti, a physiologist and biomechanist at the University of Milan, has done extensive research of human locomotion — including stair-climbing. “It is an exercise everybody can do,” Minetti told The Associated Press. “You always have stairs nearby you — free of charge compared to a gym.” Minetti did the math to explain why going up stairs is so effective for burning calories in a short amount of time. “To move 1 kilogram of body mass over 1 horizontal meter, you expend 0.5 calories,” he said. So it’s 20 times the calories moving vertically rather than horizontally.” Trained as a physician, Minetti has spent his career in research rather than treating patients. In a scientific study, Minetti makes the point that using the arms in stair-climbing adds extra power. The journal notes that handrails are available in most stairwells in skyscrapers, which maximizes “the muscle mass involved and, consequently, the mechanical/metabolic power of the ascent” by getting the arms involved. “They are relatively small muscles in the arms, but better than nothing,” Minetti said. Stairs are everywhere In this photo provided by ISF/Meeting, competitors climb stairs during a race of Stairclimbing World Championships in Osaka, western Japan, on Nov. 19, 2023. (ISF/MEETING via AP) If stair-climbing was an Olympic sport, Suzy Walsham would own a handful of gold medals. She’s won 10 races up New York’s Empire State Building — officially 1,576 stairs. She’s claimed titles in more than 100 international stair races, and was once regarded as the No. When she was living in Singapore, Walsham climbed up her 29-story building — 37 consecutive times. She covered a vertical distance of 3,200 meters (10,500 feet). “You get a lot of bang for your buck,” Walsham told the AP. But stair training is a great alternative.” Stairs are everywhere — one flight, two flights at home, inside skyscrapers, in stadiums and arenas, at work, in shopping malls, in the subway. It’s easy to build up, adding a few flights of stairs every day or week, and it improves balance. On the down side, it’s not very scenic, particularly in the stairways of towering skyscrapers. Stair-climbing can be worked into your daily routine Yuri Yoshizumi won last year’s women’s division of the Stairclimbing World Championships in her native Osaka, Japan, a 285-meter (935 feet) climb — 1,610 stairs — that she finished in 10 minutes, 20.06 seconds. “Stair-climbing is an easy sport for beginners and the general public to get into,” Yoshizumi told the AP in an email. “Elite athletes push themselves pretty hard, so it’s pretty tough. But it’s good for you to strengthen your muscles and your cardiovascular system in a short amount of time.” She added another advantage, particularly living in a large metropolis like Osaka. “It’s possible to do it in the city,” she said. – This Summarize was created by Neural News AI (V1). Source: https://apnews.com/eee98d172ee94b98538e333713a48ce4