Stair climbing as an exercise means walking up a few steps, one foot on each step, then turning around and walking back down the same way. Your thighs and buttocks lift you on the way up and control you on the way down, and every step tests your balance too. Physios often use it with older adults and with people whose knees or hips are weak or painful. It is also good practice if you feel unsure on the stairs at home.

How to do the stair climbing

Stand tall at the bottom of the stairs, close enough that the first step is just in front of your feet, and take hold of the handrail.
Put your whole foot on the first step and push down through it to lift yourself up. Let that leg do the lifting rather than bouncing off the back foot.
Take the next step with your other foot, and the one after that with the first foot again, so each foot lands on its own step. The video shows three steps.
At the top, step onto the landing or flat floor, away from the edge, before you turn. Turn around slowly with a hand on the rail, using small steps rather than pivoting on one foot.
Come back down the same way, one foot per step, lowering yourself gently onto each step instead of dropping. Watch where you place your feet.

What you should feel

Work in the front of the thighs and in the buttocks, most of all on the way up. Coming down, the front of the thigh works to slow you, and some people find that part harder on the knees. Breathing faster is normal.

Common mistakes

Hauling yourself up with the rail so your legs do little of the work. Use it for balance and a little help, not for all the lifting.
Letting the knee roll inward as you push up onto the step.
Putting only the front of the foot on the step on the way up, so the heel hangs off the edge.
Rushing, or looking ahead instead of at the steps, especially on the way down.

How often

Many programs start with 1 to 3 trips up and down a short flight of stairs, or 5 to 10 steps, once or twice a day, with a rest between trips. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

A sharp pain in your knee or hip, or a knee that gives way.
You feel unsteady or catch your foot on a step. Hold the rail, stop, and sit down on a step until you feel settled.
Chest pain or pressure, dizziness or feeling faint, a racing or irregular heartbeat, or being far more out of breath than the effort should cause.
You feel dizzy, lightheaded, faint or sick, or the room seems to spin. Hold your support, sit down and get medical advice the same day before you practice again. If you faint, it does not settle within a few minutes of sitting still, your vision suddenly blurs or goes double, or you cannot stand or walk steadily, call emergency services.

From the clinic

The steps in the video have no rail, but at home always hold the handrail, and a rail on both sides is better still. Keep the stairs well lit and clear, with nothing left on the steps and no loose mat at the bottom. If you have fallen in the past year, have osteoporosis or feel unsteady on your feet, have someone with you for the first sessions and ask your physio whether to start on a single step, such as step taps or a low step up.

Sore knees, or a recent knee or hip operation? Physios often teach one step at a time instead: going up, lead with the stronger leg, and going down, lead with the weaker or operated one, bringing both feet onto each step before you take the next. If you have had a hip or knee replacement, get the go-ahead from your surgeon or physio before you try stair climbing. Some operations limit this kind of work for the first months, so the timing depends on your surgery.

Stairs work your heart and lungs harder than walking on the flat. With a heart condition or high blood pressure, check with your doctor before you start. If chest pain, pressure or tightness does not ease quickly when you rest, spreads to your arm, neck, jaw, stomach or back, or comes with sweating, feeling sick, feeling light-headed or being short of breath, call emergency services straight away, as this can be a heart attack. If it eases quickly and none of these happen, get medical advice the same day, and do not exercise again until you have been checked.

Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-26.

This page is general education, not a diagnosis or a personal treatment plan. If you have pain, an injury or a health condition, see a physiotherapist or doctor before starting new exercises.

Stair climbing