TODAY reports on the latest viral exercise trend, a stair climber cardio workout, and includes guidance from Jordan D. Metzl, MD, sports medicine physician at HSS.

Dr. Metzl explained the stair climber is a cardio and strength workout that uses the full body, and using all of the muscles at once like that can improve physical fitness.

By removing the hands from the railing of the machine, the exercise requires the use of all core muscles for stabilization. He advised keeping the body in an upright position as it experiences the instability of walking up steps puts a high load on the abdominals.

“Just think about basically doing a 25-minute plank, with walking, it's a huge amount of exercise,” he noted.

He explained, “When you lean on the handlebars, you put force on the machine and take pressure off of your core, Metzl said. And without that additional need for balance, your core does not experience as much of a workout.

Dr. Metzl said that the best exercise programs are ones that are fun. “If you’re smiling when you’re doing it, I’m fine with that,” he said.

He recommended planks, burpees, jump squats and lunges as additional full-body workouts that will activate the core.

Read the full article at Today.com.