You just need 5 exercises and a staircase to strengthen your legs and core — and it only takes 30 minutes

A photo of a male runner and female runner running up stairs.

You don’t need a stairclimber or weights for this five-move lower-body workout, just a set of stairs and your body weight.

There are plenty of benefits of climbing, like building stronger quads, hamstrings, glutes, hips and calves, and even recruiting your core muscles simultaneously. Uphill climbs are brilliant for activating your back body (known as your posterior chain) and increasing engagement in your lower back, glutes, and hamstrings, which is why you see them cropping up in treadmill warm-ups.