Many people struggle with finding the time and motivation to work in some form of cardio.  Unused treadmills, rowing machines, stationary bikes, and elliptical machines act like the graveyard of people’s good intentions to have a cardio exercise program.

It is with this in mind that we posed an idea request over at Idea Offer.  What would you do if you only had 15 minutes per day for a cardio workout?  Our assumption is that everyone has that much time they can spare in their day.

The winning responses both had a similar answer: use the stairs. Tavlesh said:

Probably stairs. Not a StairMaster, etc. — actual stairs. Chances are there are some fairly readily accessible to you, it’s a good intensive workout you can do easily, for free, without having to go far, and that’s moderately useful in itself (you get better at taking stairs) as well as general cardio benefit.

While Kwistred echoed a similar sentiment:

Stairs! they are an excellent way of doing cardio and they improve balance at the same time (so when you are old you don’t fall over often). Stairs are very easy to get access to and free to use. You can run up or take it easy, and they are more effective than walking or jogging.

The combination of easy access and intensity make the stairs a viable option for anyone looking to work cardio into their overall workout plans.