Dooley Noted: 6/19/2014
The Stair-Down
I love riding the subway. It’s cathartic. I have written the vast majority of blog posts on my daily commutes, and I am consistently inspired by the travelers on the New York City MTA.
Yesterday, I got off the subway at my favorite stop: 63rd and Lexington.
This stop has a bevy of staircases, and escalators to ride along side the majority of them.
I am thrilled by a staircase. Each step up is an opportunity to display physical prowess and stay young.
So why is everyone taking the escalator?
I am often so lonely on those stairs. Look at each of the subway staircases at my favorite stop. They are devoid of people, except for myself.
I wonder what mills through the minds of the escalator dwellers (ED).
I imagine phrases like the following:
ED 1: “It’s too hot to take the stairs. I will be too sweaty at work.”
The Dooley Retort: “You’re hot anyway. It’s a subway in a New York summer.”
ED 2: “I worked out this morning already. I can skip the stairs.”
The Dooley Retort: “What exactly was the point of working out? Just to burn fuel? Why didn;t you just burn fuel on the staircase?”
ED 3: “I might hurt my knees if I take the stairs.”
The Dooley Retort: “If you never take the stairs, how would you know?”
ED 4: “I’m in too much of a rush. It will slow me down.”
The Dooley Retort: “Using the stairs, I beat out to the top everyone that simply stands on that escalator.”
You don’t need a fancy gym. Come to my gym, and you’ll see even it isn’t fancy. It’s heavy things to pick up and put down. It’s floor space to move.
Most of the time, you don’t need a gym at all. The world is your gym.
Put in your hour to rectify your membership dues, as you see fit. But I would see you even more fit on that free staircase.
Stairs are hard. Try things that are hard.
I’m happy to walk with you.
Try just going down at first. I call it the Stair-Down. Build up a habit to at least take the stairs on the way down.
Then, build up your capacity by taking one staircase at a time. It adds up to enormous physical fitness if you start taking the stairs as part of your daily choices.
As always, it’s your call.
– Dr. Kathy Dooley