If you usually ride the elevator instead of taking the stairs, you might want to think twice next time: A recent study found that people who climbed stairs had a lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease—and any cause—than those who don’t often walk up steps.1

The finding, which was published in the American Journal of Cardiovascular Drugs, suggests that a simple lifestyle tweak may offer a big payoff for long-term health, said lead study author Sophie Paddock, MBBS, an honorary clinical teaching fellow at the United Kingdom’s University of East Anglia Norwich.

“You don’t necessarily need to set aside an hour to go to the gym to get your heart working harder,” she said. “Choosing the stairs instead of the lift [elevator] is a very simple way of incorporating more physical activity into your day.”

Climbing Stairs Linked With Lower Risk of Cardiovascular-Related Death

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, and regular physical activity is one way to reduce cardiovascular risk.

Paddock said the researchers focused on exercise to test whether “simple changes to everyday behavior” could make a difference. They zeroed in on stair climbing because it’s an easy, quick, and accessible way to add more physical activity into your day.

For their meta-study, the researchers reviewed nine papers including roughly 480,000 participants, with a median follow-up period of 14 years. Participants ranged in age from 35 to 84, were split about equally between men and women, and included people with and without a history of heart health issues.

Stair climbing was linked with a 24% lower risk of dying from any cause. The reduction was even greater for cardiovascular disease, at 39%.

The researchers didn’t identify a sweet spot for stair climbing, and Paddock said more evidence is needed “to prescribe an optimal number of flights per day.”

Still, she said some evidence suggested that the more stair climbing you do, the greater the potential benefit. One large study included in the analysis, for example, suggested that climbing around six flights of stairs a day may deliver the biggest health boost.

Jia Shen, MD, MPH, a cardiologist and director of the UC San Diego Health Cardiovascular Clinics at Hillcrest and Bankers Hill, said she’s not surprised by the study’s findings, given the well-established cardiovascular and mortality benefits of physical activity.

Climbing stairs in particular increases cardiorespiratory fitness while also building strength, which can improve cardiovascular health markers such as blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol, added Tamanna Singh, MD, director of the Cleveland Clinic’s Sports Cardiology Center.

While Shen called it a “well-conducted systematic review,” she cautioned that the study doesn’t prove that stair climbing itself can lower the risk of death. Most of the studies included in the review were observational, pointed out Pritha Gupta, MD, PhD, a cardiologist at UCLA Health, meaning they can show associations but not causation. People who regularly climb stairs may simply have a lower risk of death because they’re healthier and more active overall, not because they walk up steps.

“Still,” Gupta added, “the consistency and magnitude of the association support the idea that even small amounts of vigorous, everyday physical activity may be beneficial for cardiovascular health.”

Practical Tips For Climbing Stairs

While the study didn’t identify the ideal amount or frequency of stair climbing, experts said the advice is simple: Take the stairs whenever you have the opportunity.

“Try to incorporate stair climbing into your daily routine,” Shen said. “Taking the stairs instead of the elevator likely has cardiovascular benefits and is an easy way to improve your cardiopulmonary fitness.”

“For now, I think the practical message is simply to look for opportunities to incorporate more movement into your day,” Paddock added. “If you normally take the lift, try taking the stairs.”

If you’re new to regular stair climbing, Gupta suggested starting with one or two flights when you’re heading to a higher floor. Once you’re comfortable with that amount, gradually increase the number of flights you climb on a regular basis.

And you don’t have to be picky about which stairs you take: The stairway at work, in a parking garage, at a shopping center, or even in your home will do the job.

But Gupta cautioned that stair climbing alone usually isn’t enough to meet your overall exercise needs. “Combine stair climbing with other activities such as walking or cycling rather than viewing it as a replacement for exercise altogether,” she said.