The Humble Staircase

It is a relief to witness the increasing awareness towards health and fitness in the current times. Courtesy to TV advertisements and social media, individuals are at least aware of healthy diet, lifestyle, and the importance of exercise. There is an effort to include movement and exercise via regular walking, Yoga, gym, and many more activities.

On the other hand, we miss out on small but frequent opportunities to exercise our body. In the frenzy of completing endless tasks in a day, we attempt to save time by taking the elevator, parking the car close to our destination, and ordering stuff rather than walking to pick up our food even if it is a nearby eatery. These are valuable short duration exercises that are so crucial for fitness, but ironically lost to us.

For the metropolitan dweller who lives in high-rise buildings, taking the stairs is something that needs to be consciously remembered. In my recent clinical experience, it was a surprise that some children were not used to stair-climbing on a routine basis.

There are many benefits of negotiating stairs—

· Improved leg strength, particularly the knee and hip extensor strength that are among the strongest muscle groups in the body.

· Increases balance.

· Reinforces alternate reciprocal movement patterns of the legs, similar to cycling, thus improving bilateral coordination.

· Enhances cardiopulmonary capacity.

On starting to negotiate 1-2 flights of stairs on a daily basis, I have observed clinical improvements in many children in terms of reduced clumsiness, increased balance, and reduced genu recurvatum (knees pushed back abnormally due to quadriceps weakness).

My advice to parents of young children is to climb 2 flights of stairs twice per day.

To adults, try to climb 2-3 floors before you take the elevator to your apartment on higher floors.

Having grown up in Mumbai during the 70s and 80s, I remember people climbing 4 flights of stairs well into their 50s and 60s. One may argue that they had no option since there were hardly elevators in 4- storey buildings constructed at the time. My perspective is different - they did not give up their daily habit of negotiating stairs. The same habit contributed to their health and fitness.

So why should we give up on climbing stairs at a much earlier age? Remember ‘use it or lose it’? Prior to Covid, it was heartening to hear from an adult that his office staff had decided to avoid using the elevator as much as possible for health and environmental benefits. While working in a New Jersey hospital 30 years ago, we would make it a habit to take stairs rather than an elevator.  

However, no exercise should be overdone. An example would be one of my patients who climbed 16 floors daily in an attempt to lose weight. Within 10 days he developed knee pain and required physiotherapy intervention. Negotiating 2-3 flights, in moderation, if you are not suffering from current injury should be fine. Always check with your doctor or a physiotherapist who is aware of your health conditions of the heart and the joints of your lower body.

So next time you see an elevator anywhere, take the stairs with your child for 1-2 floors. It is good for you, good for your child, and good for the environment. Take advantage of that small but crucial physical activity. Remember ‘use it or lose it’!