<p>Noticed the study came from Saskatchewan, Canada, where the buildings probably max out at five stories. Let’s see them duplicate it in midtown Manhattan. :p</p>
<p>Yes. And tricky for some people with medical issues.</p>
<p>I have a bad knee, and I wear dress shoes with heels to work. It is quite difficult for me to use stairs when wearing heels, especially to go down.</p>
<p>There is enormous social pressure at my company to use the stairs instead of the elevator in our three-story office buildings. There are even signs, put up by our ever helpful HR people, about how healthy it is to use the stairs.</p>
<p>^^^Isn’t it crazy the things that we set our selves up to have expectations for?!</p>
<p>My office is in the “basement” of a medical building. Only one floor (but actually 2 flights of stairs) to upstairs. None the less, I figure if I do this 5 days a week even just one time up and down (some days more) and multiply that by the days I work a year - so lets say 250 days…I probably burn off a pounds worth of calories in a year. Take it or leave it!</p>
<p>I carry about 30 pounds of stuff with me to and from the office and always use the stairs but I only have one flight up. There are a few other stairways that I have to use in the parking lot and to get to the building.</p>
<p>I have used the elevator in the past when I had ankle, knee and heel injuries. I sometimes used crutches during those periods of time. Stairs can be absolutely brutal on lower joint injuries.</p>
<p>As far as heels go, back in the 80s, the ladies used to wear sneakers and then change to dress shoes in the office.</p>
<p>I’m in midtown NYC on the 2nd floor and would love to use the stairs, unfortunately most big office towers only allows stairs for emergency evacuations and are otherwise locked.</p>
<p>That’s one of my gripes about some office buildings. They won’t let you use the stairs so you have to wait for the elevator. And then when you get an elevator, it stops on every floor in between because people are using it to go one floor up or down.</p>
<p>Ladies who take mass transit – with substantial walks to and from the subway or bus stops – still do. Ladies who drive to work tend not to bother unless the weather is so bad that they would wreck their dress shoes getting from the parking lot to the building.</p>
<p>“Ladies who take mass transit – with substantial walks to and from the subway or bus stops – still do.”</p>
<p>Ewwww… I hate the look! I’m glad to see less and less of it even in the oh-not-so-fashionable Seattle. Seriously, sneakers, white tube socks and pantyhose?! That trend should stay where it belongs - in the eighties!!! There are many, many great alternatives to the white athletic shoe for folks with foot and joint problems that do not involve heels.</p>
<p>My building requires three swipes of access card to get up to my floor using the stairwell. With the elevator, I only have to use my card once. Guess which route most folks are choosing?</p>
<p>I walk from my car to my office in my ugly athletic shoes … even when wearing a dress. If I run errands at lunch or after work, I am in my ugly athletic shoes. I have back issues, and my health if far more important than what a stranger might think of my “look.” I like wearing my heels in the office, so I am not opting for shoes that are comfortable enough to wear walking around as office shoes.</p>
<p>And I am an avid user of stairs … if I can find them, I use them.</p>
<p>I also intentionally park my car at the end of the aisle (when it is safe to do so).</p>
<p>I carry my keycard on a long lanyard that is worn around the neck. I just lean over and the keycard activates the security plate. I started using this approach as I carry a backpack and a workout/breakfast/lunch bag and need a hand to open the door.</p>
<p>My parents live in a little apartment on the third floor of their retirement community. When I visit them, I enter on the ground floor, and if I am wearing socks, I take off my shoes and sprint up the stairs. Please don’t be grossed out. It is one of the ways I amuse myself on my visits.</p>