Performance in almost every sport depends on the strength and endurance in your lower body. Both sprinting and stair running develop explosive strength, endurance, conditioning and general physical preparedness in the lower body. Sprint training is superior for developing speed, while stair running is superior in developing explosive strength and joint strength.
Training for Conditioning
Sport performance requires both sustained effort and rapid output. Interval training exposes an athlete to a sustained period of activity with short bouts of high-intensity exertion, mimicking expected competition conditions. Both sprinting and stair running develop cardiovascular endurance and strength endurance by allowing muscles to change their metabolism to adapt to the demands of sport competition.
Biomechanics
Running can be broken into two phases: propulsion and absorption or braking. You propel yourself forward with your rear leg, engaging the leg muscles in the posterior chain, including the hamstrings and glutes. You absorb your body weight with your front leg, using the muscles in the front of the upper leg, such as the quadriceps, and your calves in your lower leg. Though these phases blend seamlessly while running, they produce very different stresses on your muscles.
Sprinting
Sprinting workouts work both the propulsion and braking phases of running equally in the horizontal plane. Focus on high quality sprints in your workouts, rather than a large number of sprints. You should never exceed 1,200 high quality sprinting yards in a workout. Be sure to warm up and cool down properly, and run low-intensity recovery laps between sprints.
Stair Climbing
Running up stairs emphasizes the propulsion phase, while running down stairs emphasizes the braking phase. You can emphasize up stairs or down stairs to focus on building strength in a particular phase. In a workout, stair runs should be treated similarly to sprints. Low-intensity stair running can also be used to build up strength endurance.
Making a Choice
The choice on whether to emphasize sprinting or stair running will depend on the sport, or sports, that you participate in. The best training programs will include both sprinting and stair running, with the emphasis placed on the demands of the sport. If you're in a sport that involves explosive motion, such as football, emphasize stair running in your workouts for the best benefit. If you're in a sport where speed is a major factor, such as soccer, add sprinting to your workout regimen.
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