Because if that is the case I should be covered for awhile! I have been lucky in all of my years here in New York City by living on the first or second floor of most apartment buildings. The one time I lived several floors up I was spoiled by having an elevator.
Our new apartment is on the 5th floor of a walk up. Every time I haul myself up those stairs I have to laugh when I finally reach the door. Your would never guess I am a runner by the puffing and panting when I get to the top. What is it with a few flight of stairs?!
I am certainly not complaining. In fact I like to think that this is my booty toning exercise each time I make the trek up the steps. I am actually a big stair climbing advocate. Whenever I get a chance to take the stairs instead of an elevator or escalator I go for it. I just add that extra time on the steps to my frozen yogurt budget. Just kidding (sort of)! Although I can’t be the only one who adds a bit more to their workout or does a workout in anticipation of dessert or some fun meal, especially come the weekend!
I find myself tempted to but avoid counting the steps as I climb them. As a runner I know that this will turn into some weird pattern where I count them down and up, backwards and forwards, and so on. For instance, when we were last training for a marathon I used to play random games on our long runs. I would hear my GPS beep at a mile and I would think ok that’s 2 miles down, if we turn around now we have four miles covered. Imagine how crazy this can get out a 20 mile out and back.
I heard Hoda Kotb say that she thinks of each mile as 3 songs on her iPod and I started doing that. It is scary when you start a long run and realize that 22 times 3 songs equals 66 songs. Do I even have that many songs on my shuffle?! And then I start counting songs on my run and figuring out how many times I beat the quota of 3 songs per mile. Take that numbers game!
The same goes for a typical out and back run of 7 miles or any other distance. I will look at my watch and see 3.15 miles and without even thinking tell myself to go .35 miles more. It turns into a crazy numbers game. The way I think in numbers during the day due to my running makes me think I should have gone into accounting or at least paid more attention during math class (although I have to say all those college Calculus classes have still not paid off for me and if they do when I am out running then we are in some serious trouble).
This is exactly why I am trying my hardest to refuse to count the steps up the five flights of stairs to our new place. If I start now I know that it will turn into, “Ok that’s 20 steps down, only 62 more to go.” Next thing you know I will be figuring out just how many seconds that will take me to cover the steps up to the door or just how many songs I can listen to before I am home.
Running makes me go numbers crazy!
Running On Healthy 
Are all those stairs safe, with your talent for unlikely falls? 😀
I just burst out laughing. I did think about this and will make certain to not go out for a drink before coming home for sure. I can’t even bring myself to look over the side to downstairs!
Oh YES, stairs do count!! You get quite the workout everyday!! What a bonus!!! 😉
I like to think of it like that.
For sure! 😉
These stairs definitely count as cross training – and getting a big load of groceries could be an entire workout if you just moved one bag at a time!
I was just contemplating the grocery store. Should be a good cardio and leg training in one.
I totally see extra workouts whenever I look at some kind of tasty snack or dessert. “How many calories in those cookies? Ok, that’s an extra half hour on the bike tonight.”
I am with you! Sometimes it leads to pretty dumb justifications or extra workouts but I like to think of it as balance 🙂
Yikes, you’re going to be so fit from going up and down those stairs all the time! I’m pretty sure they count as cross training 🙂
Or at least an excuse for dessert 🙂
OMG! You reminded of something! When I lived in Ukraine, they were used to turn off electricity in the evening (I still have no idea why, it’s pretty random and weird). But anyhow, we were used to live on the 14th floor!!! IMAGINE!!! Those stairs really seemed never ending after my daily 3-4-hour rhythmic gymnastics training. LOL! That being said, going up 5 floors seems like a good extra workout. We’ll even consider it cross-training 😉 xoxo
14 floors is just nuts! I can’t even imagine.
Oh, and we had a dog to walk, so that times 2!!! Oh boy, I have no idea how we did it. But I guess, when there’s no choice, you just do it 😀
I also think all kind of number related things, it’s just the way my mind works for some reason.
I think it is pretty normal. I think it comes from when I first started running and used numbers to distract myself from the misery of beginning running. Now it is just a habit.
Yes, they do
I agree 🙂
I’m all about the numbers while running. I try to guesstimate my distance through. Convert to percentage. Get current time. Extrapolate current time and percent complete to give me an estimated end time. If I’m not happy with it, try to workout how many half mile segments I need to do at a faster pace and what that pace should be. Then I compare end time to the calc’d number to see how close I was. Good fun, honestly.
This is like a whole math lesson in itself. I love it!
It’s a slippery slope to go down…
omg, I’m such a numbers person. I’ve figured out how many steps are in a 1/10 of a mile and a 1/2 a mile and will count them at various times throughout my run.
That is amazing that you figured out how many steps. Give me enough time and I am sure I will do the same!
I some times go mad with counting but I know can control it. 🙂 Its the silly kids songs that I can’t get out off my mind!
Oh I know exactly what you mean! Darn kids songs.
Yes, to everything you wrote!!! 😀
I don’t listen to music when I run but I do look at my watch and think, “Oh, once I get to 5 miles I can turn around. It’s only 5 miles.” Umm, it’s actually ten total Helly lol!!
I also do the stairs thing at home. It’s 5-7-5 (steps) haha!!
LOL that you know the steps! Those numbers are a funny thing aren’t they? But they really do help.
I love stairs but knowing you have to take five flights every time you go home, ah it wears on you.
I actually don’t mind. I find it more amusing than anything. However the place came fully furnished. If we had to do that I might be singing another tune.
Ha ha, you make me laugh. A great way to develop any OCD tendencies 😉
Yes running is the perfect activity for all of us Type A OCD people!
Haha, nice! I always take the stairs at work. Sometimes I forget when I ran before work and I wonder why my legs are a bit sore/tired. Haha.
Oh yes the forgotten post run meets the stairs. Always a fun reminder!
Stairs – definitely. I’d consider myself pretty fit but I can’t cope with stairs. And I’m always doing math in my head when I’m running – counting down how longs is left to go especially if it’s a crappy run!
Always helpful for crappy runs!
I am always doing “run math” too! It’s really the only time I like math. 🙂
hahahaha, I’m so glad to see that I’m not the only person who does that! And I hate numbers… I avoid any kind of number-related task at work because they get me all frazzled. But put my running shoes on and I’m all about the numbers.
I have to give myself serious talks sometimes otherwise my numbers brain gets completely fried on a run LOL
Great post 🙂
Oh for sure stairs count! I ALWAYS breathe so hard going up stairs!!!
My mom has me convinced to do them two steps at a time. She claims it slims the legs. I am out to prove her wrong…or hopefully right!
Stairs DEFINITELY count! I can’t go up any amount of stairs without counting them as I go. Bizarre, and OCD I guess…Gail
I am doing my best to not start counting. I did start taking them two at a time because my mom said it tightens your quads and I am hoping to prove her right but likely disprove her 🙂
Hmmm hadn’t thought of that. Maybe I’ll join your experiment