Out of breath walking up stairs

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smquigg4019
smquigg4019 Posts: 4 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
One of the many reasons why I decided to lose weight and improve my fitness is because I am always out of breath walking up stairs. My workplace is in an older building and I have to go up and down the stairs to use the restroom.

My question is, how long should it take to improve my fitness enough to not huff and puff after one flight of stairs? I was completely sedentary until about a month ago, have gone from a BMI of 35 to 30 after two and a half months of dieting, do cardio 4-5 times a week, and strength train 2-3 times a week. I have done low impact step aerobics for a 50 minutes at a time, but can't manage a flight of stairs without an increase in heart rate and heavy breathing.

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  • quiksylver296
    quiksylver296 Posts: 28,442 Member
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    I walk the four flights of stairs at my work at least 3 times a day, usually more. Been doing it for two years. They STILL make me breathe harder. They NEVER get easier, the b@stards! But I keep doing them. They must be good for me!
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,523 Member
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    Consistency will get you there. You were already out of breath when sedentary and I'm betting your aerobics aren't that strenuous if you can go 50 minutes. Maybe add a riser to the step the next time and you'll see how your fitness is then. Then maybe do half the class with the step higher.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
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    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • smiles6428
    smiles6428 Posts: 35 Member
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    I'd say continue with what you are doing and add challenges as you can. As soon as you are able to get up one flight of stairs a little easier, go for 2! Consistency is key. You will get there. Nice work!
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
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    quiksylver296 wrote: »
    I walk the four flights of stairs at my work at least 3 times a day, usually more. Been doing it for two years. They STILL make me breathe harder. They NEVER get easier, the b@stards! But I keep doing them. They must be good for me!

    This is accurate of my life also- even when I was training for my half marathon- and when I was doing stairmaster 2-3 times a week for 15-30 minutes- walking up the 3 flights for work STILL made me breathe harder.

    IMHO it's partly because you're carrying things- and your system isn't primed to do work so it sort of is a mini "shock" for lack of a better word.

    Shrug I don't think anything of it other than an annoyance (my pulse was 51 when I went to donate blood- they won't take it at 50 - so I don't really concern myself with stairs if my stats are generally over all very good and continue to be so)
  • smquigg4019
    smquigg4019 Posts: 4 Member
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    Thanks for the encouragement. I actually work on the 8th floor (bathrooms are on every other level). I walk all the way down if I am not in a hurry after work. My goal is to be able to walk up the 8 flights every morning!
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    Seems most people do stairs faster than they could ever sustain for a long time - if you have 4 flights you don't take it at a pace as if you knew you had 40 flights to do.

    Therefore it's usually done anaerobically - the muscles are more than able to do the pace - the aerobic system not.
    You'll always be out of breath probably, you'll just get faster doing it.

    Walk them like you know you have 40 flights to do - even now I'd bet you wouldn't be out of breath.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
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    Take the stairs at a slower pace.
  • ModernRock
    ModernRock Posts: 372 Member
    edited December 2016
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    There's a trail I hike regularly that starts with a moderate incline. This is after sitting in the car for 30 minutes to get to the trailhead, which is right next to the parking area. That section gets me every time because as my fitness level improves I tend to go faster. Once I'm warmed up there's no doubt that I can hike much farther than I could a year or two ago and take on the much steeper/longer inclines later in the hike better than ever. So, going from sitting to lifting your body weight up a flight of stairs (or a hill) is asking a lot. As mentioned by others, it'll improve, and slow down a bit in the meantime.
  • kenyonhaff
    kenyonhaff Posts: 1,377 Member
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    Just keep moving. Learn how to keep your heart rate at an aerobic pace for YOU. As a general rule, it's being able to talk while exercising.

    Also, is there a chance you are asthmatic? Asthma can develop at any age, and can be confused with being out of shape.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
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    quiksylver296 wrote: »
    I walk the four flights of stairs at my work at least 3 times a day, usually more. Been doing it for two years. They STILL make me breathe harder. They NEVER get easier, the b@stards! But I keep doing them. They must be good for me!

    This is me too! I actually like the feeling of breathlessness. Don't be too hard on yourself, OP, enjoy the process.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    I bet you can do them easier than when you started. Sometimes we set unrealistic absolute goals for ourselves. For example, on what basis did you decide that you "should" be able to walk up 8 flights of stairs without getting winded, whatever that means to you? I would encourage you to look for improvement, starting with that goal for ONE flight, then two, etc. When I started 2 1/2 years ago, my BMI was 47. I couldn't make it up my own driveway and could barely do 10 minutes at a low resistance on my elliptical. Now I'm at BMI 24. In Oct I climbed 53 flights of stairs up the Seattle Space Needle with no problem and this morning I did 40 min on the elliptical, at a higher rpm and up to the highest resistance. It takes time. Look for improvement, not perfection. I saw a great quote this week,
    "What seems impossible today will one day be your warm up." Keep it going.
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 9,056 Member
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    lorrpb wrote: »
    "What seems impossible today will one day be your warm up." Keep it going.

    Ain't that the truth! Especially in the weight room.

    I found stairs easier the more weight I lost, rather than as a function of my aerobic health. But also ask yourself this: though you may get out of breath on the stairs, how long after do you remain out of breath? I still get temporarily winded going up several flights of stairs at my church from the basement choir room to my kids' daycare on the top floor, but that feeling generally disappears in under a minute. Back when I was a whole lot heavier it would be sometimes up to ten minutes before I felt normal.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
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    heybales wrote: »
    Seems most people do stairs faster than they could ever sustain for a long time - if you have 4 flights you don't take it at a pace as if you knew you had 40 flights to do.

    Therefore it's usually done anaerobically - the muscles are more than able to do the pace - the aerobic system not.
    You'll always be out of breath probably, you'll just get faster doing it.

    Walk them like you know you have 40 flights to do - even now I'd bet you wouldn't be out of breath.

    This is true--people tend to walk up stairs faster than they would if they were working out on a stair climber.

    Plus, walking up stairs is hard work. If I had time, I'd work out the numbers, but people often underestimate the amount of effort it takes to move body weight up a vertical distance.

  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,523 Member
    edited December 2016
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    Longest stair climb I did, just to it instead of ride the escalator, was a Universal Studios in Hollywood.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59D6XijBlsQ

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • smquigg4019
    smquigg4019 Posts: 4 Member
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    I don't expect to walk up 8 flights of stairs easily, but I usually get to work early so I can take some time to recuperate before I have to get to work. I will eventually work up to it. I just thought that one flight shouldn't get me out of breath since I generally do cardio for 30-50 minutes, but I understand now why I was wrong. I do probably recover quicker than I used to, like Nossmf mentioned. Also, thanks Kenyonhaff for mentioning asthma. I don't think I have asthma, but I was recently diagnosed with anemia and am being treated for that. I am sure when that subsides, I will be able to increase my intensity. I guess I am doing well for only starting to exercise a month or so ago.
  • thelovelyLIZ
    thelovelyLIZ Posts: 1,227 Member
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    quiksylver296 wrote: »
    I walk the four flights of stairs at my work at least 3 times a day, usually more. Been doing it for two years. They STILL make me breathe harder. They NEVER get easier, the b@stards! But I keep doing them. They must be good for me!

    I agree with this! I college I lived on the fourth floor dorm and tried to always take the stairs. It never really got easier- if I was on the phone with my mom she could always tell when I was going up to my dorm because I'd be breathing heavy.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 24,861 Member
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    I cycle a lot and walk ... and cycle and walk up hills ... but stairs were always my nemesis. I couldn't climb more than about 2 flights without looking like I needed medical attention.

    So, about 2 years ago, I decided to do something about it.

    At that time, I worked on the 5th floor of my office building so I started by doing all 5 flights when I arrived at work in the morning. I was practically dead when I arrived at the top and needed my inhaler. But I kept doing it every morning for about 3 weeks.

    Then I added an extra set of 5 flights at lunch ... did that for 3 weeks.

    Then another set in the afternoon ... did that for 3 weeks.

    And it wasn't too long before I was walking 25 flights a day.

    Then we moved and my new building has 11 flights of stairs. I try to do anywhere from 20 to 40 flights a day. And yes, it does get easier. :)

    But it does help to pace yourself. Don't go too fast. And at landings take 2-3 steps on the flat ground before the next flight.


    Happily, doing all this stair climbing has made a significant improvement in my climbing skills on the bicycle.

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