By Natalie Kilgore
natalie@newsroom.byu.edu
Seeing a BYU student gasp for breath at the top of the stairs leading up from the Richards Building is a familiar sight.
Because of the length of the stairs, some students complain about the arduous hike.
But dislike alone is not a valid reason for opting to take the elevator, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
The CDC is urging more stair climbing, according to their October 2000 report.
The report suggested taking the stairs every day could reap big health benefits down the road.
According to the CDC, people who spend at least 10 minutes a day going up and down stairs could lose up to 10 pounds in one year and greatly improve their cardiovascular health.
Given the choice between riding an escalator or climbing an adjacent flight of stairs, 95 percent of the people observed by researchers from Johns Hopkins University Medical Center in Baltimore chose the path of least physical effort.
It seems no matter what their physical fitness level, students dislike hiking up flights of stairs in order to get to campus.
As in any sort of physical activity, when climbing the stairs, it is important that students use correct technique
Researchers at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., found that in order to get the maximum exercise out of climbing stairs, students should use long, slow steps in order to work more muscles.
The researchers also suggested concentrating weight on the heels of the feet instead of the balls.
Most importantly students should walk uprightly, even with the weight of a heavy backpack, rather than bending at the waist, so they are less likely to aggravate the knees and lower back, the researchers suggested.
Strong dislike for walking up stairs is a feeling Michelle Carr experiences daily.
Carr, 20, a junior from West Jordan, Utah, majoring in history teaching, said she dreads walking up the Tanner building stairs.
'All I can think while I'm walking is 'when is this torture going to end?'' she said.
Although the calories she burns as a result of walking the stairs are a definite bonus, Carr said walking up several flights of stairs with a heavy backpack is simply not fun.
Walking up the RB stairs remind Cat Summers of the good exercise she is getting.
Summers, 21, a junior from Grand Junction, Colo., majoring in geography teaching, said the additions of a big coat and backpack make the whole ordeal more difficult.
Both Carr and Summers said they agreed once they leave campus for the day, they definitely do not make the trip back, primarily due to the stairs.