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METROWORKOUT

Steps to health

Photo: Bijoy Ghosh

CLIMB EVERY STAIR And you’ll be there

“Use the stairs for a healthier heart. Avoid escalators as much as possible,” say doctors. I started using the staircases as a contingency measure. Growing up in Delhi, where occasional earthquakes spooked everyone, I took the stairs and timed myself to complete a sprint down two flights in half a minute, as part of the contingency plan, in case of a massive quake. Notwithstanding the fact that even standing straight in the eventuality of such a calamity was remote, I managed to soon emerge as a self-professed champion in alighting flights of staircases, so much that skipping two stairs at a time became almost second nature.

Now, years later, with laziness resulting in a broadly-sedentary lifestyle, I decide to hit the gym. After rather memorable experiences with the treadmill and the cycle, I hit the stepper with a vengeance. Egged on by TV ads and doctors’ advice, I thought that the calorie count lost would soon skyrocket and some 1,000 steps later, I shall be lighter by at least a few grams.

I begin with great enthusiasm, taking great strides forward, almost losing my balance in one of the attempts. After about five minutes of exercises on the stepper, I was impressed to find that I had completed nearly 500 steps, but one look at the calorie meter and I was in for a shock, as it had barely touched the 30 calorie mark.

Feeling that it was lack of energy and speed that was responsible for the abysmal calorie count, I increase the speed and increase the resistance levels, yet the amount of calorie lost nudges by slowly, showing no signs of any dramatic loss. Nearly 15 minutes later, sweating and tired by the sudden burst of exercise that my body is clearly not acclimatised to, my body muscles go on strike and refuse to move. With great difficulty, I hobble out of the gym, realising an important lesson that losing body flab cannot be achieved through a single day at the gym.

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