Day 4: Nov 12, 2009 - Stairs

OK - so I'm still home sick in bed - but I couldn't handle doing NOTHING for another whole day. Hmmm I can't go out, I don't want to make people sick, so what can I do at home.

Living in a 30 story apartment building has it's advantages. A short elevator ride took me to parking level B1 from whence I began my ascent.

Lap 1 - 30 flights UP
6:13, 129 avg bpm

Lap 2 - 30 flights DOWN
4:27, 138bpm - 105 bmp, what a drop!

Lap 3 - 30 flights UP
4:54, 160 avg bpm

Lap 4 - 30 flights DOWN
4:16, 147 avg bpm

Muscles worked: quadriceps, hamstrings, gluteal muscles, hip flexors, and calves.

I walked back up the few floors to my appartment after having finished in the basement as a cool down. A little short on breath, both from the work out and the local tenants that don't pay much attention to the "NO SMOKING" signs, it felt as though it had been a decent work out. Then the NEXT DAY I was walking down the front steps of my building and wow, my quads burned! Pretty exciting!

Some research on stair climbing led me to a quote by Martica Heaner, Ph.D., M.A., M.Ed., for MSN Health & Fitness. "climbing up stairs will not bulk up your legs. Rather, how muscular your legs are depends on your genes". She went on to expand that, "it is very unlikely that stair climbing provides enough resistance to encourage muscle growth". No wonder the article was listed on a website entitled "Free Diets . com", you couldn't pay me to listen to that advice.
After 1 day in the stairwell my legs feel like they want to bust out of my jeans. So maybe it's not quite Rocky.... but it's a start.

Check out these peaks!