#BWPSelfie of the Week: This Girl Runs 48 Flights of Stairs Every Week
Welcome to our new Monday feature, the #BWPSelfie of the Week! Read about why we’re celebrating selfies—and the sweaty Philadelphians who take them—below.
Name: Tory Mather
Day job: Business Analyst in the Risk Analytics department at Independence Blue Cross.
Where she snapped this: 48th floor of the Independence Blue Cross building stairwell.
What she was doing: Using my lunch break to run stairs to re-energize my brain.
How long it takes to run 48 flights of steps: A lot shorter than you would think—it’s less than 20 minutes up and down, which is why stairs are a great lunchtime workout. Maximum amount of sweat for a minimum investment of time.
How her legs feel after running 48 flights of steps: Not too bad anymore because the muscles have gotten used to it. The first time was a little rough and I couldn’t run all of them. I’ve been working to run more and more floors each time, and alternate walking and running a flight when I can’t run anymore. Last week I ran from 1 to 30 straight through, alternated walking and running 31 to 40, and ran the last eight!
Why she does it again week after week: I started at IBC on June 2nd and wanted to meet people. I found out that there was a group that ran stairs on Wednesdays at lunch and figured I’d jump in. It’s great meeting different people in the company that I otherwise wouldn’t interact with on a daily basis. People from all different departments and all levels of fitness do the Wednesday Stair Climb. As soon as I make it through the workout, I know I’m halfway through the week.
How she stays motivated to sweat: I rowed competitively for a long time and just recently stopped. The day I decided to hang up my oars, I signed up for the Philadelphia Marathon and a half Ironman triathlon. My life had been so focused on training for rowing that I wanted to do something that really took me out of my comfort zone. These definitely accomplish that goal! A workout like the stair climb isn’t specific to that type of event, but helps me push myself both mentally and physically.
Editor’s note: In the spirit of bringing our community together and helping you guys inspire each other, we wanted to carve out a place on the blog to feature you, our readers, and celebrate all the ways you stay healthy and fit. This is our way to give a virtual high-five to Be Wellers who are sweating up a storm, making deliciously healthy meals, trying new adventures, and having all kinds of fun in and around Philly. So we want you to send us your healthiest, happiest selfies—tag ’em #BWPSelfie on Instagram and Twitter, or email them—and we could feature you in an upcoming edition. To see our previous selfies, go here.
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