You’ve heard it a million times, if you want to get some physical activity in your day, take the stairs instead of the elevator. Most of us still refuse. It might be out of laziness, but it could be the idea that in this rush rush world of ours, we think it is faster. Well, a study done by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) proves this wrong.
It actually takes approximately twice as much time to take the elevator when ascending and descending one floor. To test this, researchers at the University of South Carolina recorded the time required to ascend and descend one floor by taking the stairs and elevator over several days. A small group of participants were instructed to alternate between elevator and stair use and to take the stairs as a self-selected normal pace during the course of their daily routine.
The time required to take the elevator was significantly greater than the time required to use the stairs going both up and down one floor. The excess time for the elevator was attributed to the wait, not the travel time, since the elevator ride was measured at approximately 10 seconds.
If climbing the stairs saves you time and can add some physical activity in your day then it’s a win win situation. It may even help with sick leave in a corporate setting. The bottom line is the stairs win, so start climbing!
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