Step Up
Stairs in Mount Tolmie Park in Victoria, BC 2024 You've likely heard of Blue Zones -- 5 specific areas in Greece, Japan, Costa Rica, Italy, and California. They are places where people live happily with extreme longevity and few health conditions. They do many things 'right' without even trying, through their diet, exercise, and often gardening. After living for 3 1/2 weeks on an extremely rugged island in the Aegean sea in Greece, without a vehicle, I've come to believe one of the most effective* forms of exercise is to climb stairs (or hills). Our accommodations were perched high on a steep hill, requiring us to walk down into town and back up at least once a day. Huff-puffing our way up with hearts pounding, we thought we might keel over, lest we stop for breaks at least 3 times. We lost count of how many actual steps -- 300+. Some days it felt a little easier, but it was always a challenging leg and cardio workout. STAIR STATS reveal they are less...