If you’ve ascended a flight or two of stairs, you likely know the feeling of being out of breath once you reach the top.
It’s a common occurrence among folks of all ages and fitness abilities. But is it something to worry about?
Experts told HuffPost there are a few points to keep in mind when it comes to this phenomenon. While it can be normal, it can also be cause for concern or even a fitness challenge to try and improve. Here’s what to know:
It can be perfectly normal — going up stairs is harder on your body than walking on a flat surface.
Feeling out of breath after walking up a flight of stairs is “what we call a normal physiological response,” said Dr. Katherine Pohlgeers, a family medicine and sports medicine doctor at University of Louisville Health. “Because you’ve got this increased demand on your body, you’ve got increased work — you’ve got increased oxygen demand and ventilatory requirements.”
If you’re winded for a minute or so but can easily catch your breath, it’s no cause for concern, said Karl Erickson, a performance specialist at Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine.
“It’s quite normal … you’re essentially lifting your body. You’re doing a squat or a lunge when you go up the stairs,” said Erickson, “so, definitely more effortful than just walking.”
Just how winded you are will vary; you’ll be more out of breath if you run up the stairs or walk up with a heavy suitcase than if you leisurely walked up the stairs. Some folks may not even notice the breathlessness as much as others.
“If you’ve got an elite athlete ― like, I doubt Caitlin Clark gets winded going up a flight of stairs ― but for the average middle-aged person, and, unfortunately, especially here in the United States, we tend to live a little bit more sedentary lifestyle, so it can be very normal to get winded just going up one flight of stairs,” Pohlgeers said.
If it’s a new change or you’re noticing prolonged breathlessness, you should let your doctor know.
While it can be perfectly normal to feel winded after climbing the stairs, there are a few red flags that may signal a concern.
Is your breathlessness a new issue that’s never happened before? Or is it getting worse? If the answer to either of those questions is yes, you should talk to a doctor about potential underlying issues, according to Pohlgeers. “The biggest thing is for people not to necessarily think, ‘Oh, my gosh, I’m dying,’ but also, don’t always just simply dismiss it as, ‘Well, I’m out of shape.’”
“Those are things that we really take seriously,” Pohlgeers added. “If there is a change in the exercise capacity, just making sure that we as doctors are able to do our due diligence and rule out any underlying conditions, so that we can maximize people’s lifestyles and help them be as healthy as they possibly can.”
Underlying conditions such as heart failure, obesity, chronic lung disease, being a smoker, COPD and even being anemic can all make the breathlessness you feel after walking up stairs worse.
“How long it takes you to recover is always a good indicator, too,” Erickson said.
It’s normal for your breathing to be faster for a minute or two after walking up a bunch of stairs, Erickson explained. “But if it’s staying elevated past three minutes or a prolonged period of time, that’s when it becomes more concerning.”
If you notice chest pain, headache or vision changes along with the breathlessness, that’s worrisome and worth chatting with your doctor about too, Pohlgeers added.
Here’s how you can build your stair-climbing endurance:
If you want to be less winded after climbing the stairs, start doing it more often (as long as you don’t have any underlying conditions that can put your health at risk). If you have issues such as heart failure or COPD that make climbing stairs a challenge, get those treated first, Pohlgeers stressed.
“Your body adapts to imposed demands on it. So, if you’re practicing going up the stairs, you become more efficient,” Erickson said. The muscles needed to climb the stairs will strengthen the more you use them, he added.
“We’ll ask patients, actually, that are getting ready to go into surgery, it’s like a pre-op clearance: ‘Could you carry groceries up three to four flights of stairs?’” Pohlgeers explained.
It’s OK if you’re out of breath by the top of the three or four flights of stairs. The concern is can you physically do it without having symptoms like chest pain, vision changes or a headache, she said.
“If you get up three or four flights of stairs as an average person carrying groceries, you’re good. That’s a very good sign,” Pohlgeers noted.
“Developing your base strength levels — doing lunges, doing squats, that’s going to give you more power, more strength to go up [stairs],” Erickson added. Improving your cardiovascular fitness can also help decrease the fatigue you feel at the top of the stairs.
When working on building up your endurance, do so gradually, Pohlgeers suggested. You don’t need to go up and down the stairs five times in a row. Instead, slowly build up your fitness ability in a sustainable and even enjoyable way, whether that’s by doing more yard work, going on walks with your neighbor or taking up gardening.
As you work on your strength and cardiovascular fitness, your stair-climbing endurance should also improve, according to Erickson. You’ll be easily climbing back-to-back flights of stairs in no time.