How do you like to get in shape?
Celebrity personal trainer, Matt Roberts is sharing his tips to help people get in shape using a cost-effective method - a set of stairs.
The fitness expert is helping to prepare people from all over the country to take on the ultimate endurance event, Vertical Rush, in aid of Shelter on 5 March 2013.
Matt is sharing his expert tips to help people to prepare for the race in a week's time, as the housing and homelessness charity prepares to host the original and toughest tower-running challenge for the fifth year running.
Matt Roberts said: “In just a few years, stair running has taken the fitness world by storm – and it’s the smartest addition to a workout plan I can think of. Whether you’re an exercise novice or a regular runner, there’s nothing like taking the stairs to burn fat, improve your heart health, and strengthen your muscles. Vertical Rush is the perfect opportunity to see and feel the difference that stair-running can make, and raise some much-needed cash for Shelter at the same time.
“I’m delighted to be able to help people prepare for the challenge with these new tips. Having run up Tower 42 myself, I know that every piece of training pays off. Following this advice will get you ready to race up 42 floors and raise money to help Shelter with a smile on your face.”
Matt Roberts’ stair running tips:
1. “Try interval training – an efficient way of improving your cardio fitness, which will be absolutely essential for running up flights of stairs. Short intense bursts raise your heart rate, improve your body’s ability to cope with lactic acid, and help endurance. Try doing some fast sprints as part of your Vertical Rush training.”
2. “Work on your lower body strength, particularly in your glutes and hamstrings, which are the driving muscles behind stair climbs – and often surprisingly weak to begin with. Upping the strength in these muscles will mean they can continue performing at a good rate for longer. Include some deadlifts, glute bridges and single leg squats in your workouts.”
3. “You don’t have to have hundreds of stairs to train on. Step ups – on a single stair or in the gym - are a very similar movement to stair climbs but can be used in a variety of ways in your training.“
4. “Strengthen your core. Stair climbs force you body to work one leg at a time, so your core muscles are essential to stabilise your body. The stronger your core is, the faster you’ll be able to get up the stairs.”
5. “Try adding more resistance by wearing a loaded rucksack or strapping on ankle weights while you train. This tougher workout is a great alternative to more straightforward stair runs, raising your heart rate more quickly as well as improving your strength and lactic acid resistance. Lighter weights allow you to race up quicker and improve your endurance, while heavier weights and taking fewer steps work your hamstrings and glutes to improve your strength.”
6. “For a more intense workout, try jumping up two or three stairs at a time. This forces your muscles to generate explosive bursts of power, meaning that you’ll get stronger faster.”
The award-winning Vertical Rush will see 1,500 people race up the 920 steps of Tower 42, the City of London’s original skyscraper. The event will see participants run up the equivalent of 275km altogether – enough to circle the M25 almost one and a half times.
Vertical Rush will raise more than £300,000 for Shelter, helping the charity to reach even more people affected by bad housing or homelessness. Just £100 raised by a runner could pay for a Shelter housing adviser to help prevent five families from being evicted from their homes.
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