189 Steps Beyond : Fitness: The once obscure 4th Street Steps have become the ultimate stair machine for the ‘in’ crowd. Some say the the area is haunted, but many know it’s the hottest pickup spot in town.

The exercise devotees flock there in droves, attired in comfortable sweats or snazzy designer workout outfits.

They come with determination written on their faces. They’re prepared for the definitive workout.

Their destination, however, is not a state-of-the-art, equipment-filled health club. Rather, it’s a simple set of 189 outdoor steps.

The Ultimate Staircase is commonly known as the 4th Street Steps. The top is at 4th Street and Adelaide Drive at Santa Monica’s northern edge. From there, the steps plunge into Santa Monica Canyon, down to the intersection of Entrada Drive and Ocean Avenue in Los Angeles.

It is an idyllic spot, complete with ocean view, an abundance of greenery and a welcome breeze on hot days. It’s free, too. Moreover, doing the steps gets the heart rate up, not to mention being a caloric furnace that helps slim, trim and tone glutes, quads and hips.

“These are five times harder than a StairMaster at a gym,” said James Stewart, 36, of West Los Angeles, as he took a breather from a recent workout.

Exhausted first-timer Hugh Burns, 21, concurred. “I’m ready to drop over. I just can’t even think straight. My thighs are like spaghetti,” he said, after doing six reps (up and down once is a repetition). “You definitely need to be in shape to do it.”

Most people approach the steps by walking or running. But some ascending and descending masters take it one step further, if you’ll pardon the pun. They turn the endeavor into a type of dance, sidestepping, back-stepping and taking the steps by twos or threes.

Some perform ballet-type moves by extending a limb after each step. Then there are those who swing leg and hand weights while stepping.

The regulars do anywhere from two reps once a week to 20 reps five times a week. The record, veterans say, is 74 reps.

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Good workout notwithstanding, many use the site as a social venue. Not surprisingly, romancing on or in front of the steps is not uncommon. Indeed, many singles scope out dating prospects.

“Most people come to find their future ex-wives,” quipped Kirk Miller, 30, of Beverly Hills.

“This is the best pickup place in town,” said Pamella D’Pella, 36.

Opening lines range from the mundane (“How many reps are you gonna do?”) to the inspired (“The steps are haunted.”)

The haunted story comes courtesy of D’Pella, who was advised not to do the steps late at night lest she be bothered by a ghost.

“They say a guy in his 60s did 25 sets every day. (One day) after he finished his last set, he sat on the grass and had a heart attack. They say his spirit is still at the steps . . . and he’ll trip you if you do it too late at night. It gets real silly,” said D’Pella, who journeys from Larchmont Village to the exercise site.

And if people don’t connect romantically, they can network. Indeed, there’s a camaraderie among those who brave the steps together. Of course, the close proximity helps--the staircase is only 3 feet, 11 inches wide.

Regulars include bankers, lawyers, secretaries, real estate agents, firefighters, bodybuilders, agents and celebrities. For example, Oliver Stone and Harry Hamlin like to do the steps, their assistants confirmed. Tom Hanks, Daryl Hannah, Jackson Browne, Sean Penn, Judge Reinhold and Jeff Bridges have been spotted exercising on or near the steps as well.

The steps are popular round the clock, but rush hour is from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Another hot time is from 6:30 to 8 a.m.

Some early risers regard their evening counterparts with suspicion, if not derision. “It’s a total zoo, especially when you get a lot of looky-loos,” Santa Monica resident Fred Alexander, 52, said, referring to the evening scene.

“It’s much more of a G-string crowd,” said serious early morning stairstepper Nilou Salimpour, 22.

“I think the morning crowd is a lot more driven,” said muscular actor Haskell Anderson, whose personal best was 48 reps.

Apparently, certain unwritten rules of steps etiquette exist.

“There’s nothing that bothers me more than the smell of perfume on the stairs,” said Santa Monica resident Richard Michaelsen, 30. “You can barely breathe to begin with.”

Other no-nos include spitting on the steps, wearing clanging bracelets and fooling around with people’s makeshift counters (rocks and leaves that people use to keep track of reps).

Despite being named after a Santa Monica street, the 4th Street Steps lie mostly in Los Angeles. According to West Los Angeles district engineer Stan Sysak, the top 22 steps are in Santa Monica. The bottom 167 are in Los Angeles.

Thus, the Los Angeles Public Works Department’s Bureau of Street Maintenance is responsible for maintaining the staircase, as well as two nearby ones, one to the east and another to the west.

The latter walkway, constructed in 1929, goes through woods. “It’s good for seniors, because it has a gradual grade,” said Alexander Man, 71, a longtime Santa Monica Canyon resident.

The 4th Street staircase, built by the city of Los Angeles in cooperation with Santa Monica, dates from about 1940. In 1981, the original decaying timber steps were replaced by concrete ones.

For years, the steps were a well-kept secret. About five years ago, traffic began to grow. Then about a year ago, they somehow suddenly became an “in” exercise spot.

The onslaught of cars and people troubles some Adelaide Drive residents, who find their lawns being used as hangouts and warm-up venues.

“You literally cannot find a parking spot,” said resident Bill Leyhe, 42.

“I’m just worried somebody is going to get hit,” said neighbor Maria Blase, whose hedge has been knocked over more than once by a careless driver. “It’s just too much traffic for the street.”

But not all the residents are unhappy. Adelya Patterson, whose hillside home lies on the staircase route, cheerfully greets regulars.

“Most of the people that come up and down are very nice. So what’s there to complain about?” said the 80-something Patterson, whose strong legs are a tribute to the steps she travels daily.

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Doctors warn that the steps are not for everyone.

“Only people who are really in good shape and have been screened by their physician should be doing it,” said cardiologist Mark Zatzkis. “Some of the people there . . . are obviously overdoing it,” Zatzkis added. Both he and some of his patients do the steps.

Those with knee and ankle problems also should steer clear, said orthopedic surgeon Ken Horacek. And everyone should start out slowly. “I would not . . . do multiple reps the first time,” Horacek advised, “I would do a set of one and see how I tolerated it and slowly increase the amount.”

Good workout or not, many consider this stairstepping fervor a bit silly. “I think it’s funny that people will spend time on the 405 in traffic and then come here to just (wait in line) behind somebody going up and down stairs,” said filmmaker Philip Michelson, 28.

Using the Steps Here are a few points of etiquette and ritual for the 4th Street Steps:

* Don’t spit on the steps! (Over the railing is OK.)

* Don’t wear perfume. It provokes nausea.

* Do wear deodorant--or at least bathe first.

* If it’s not too crowded, let faster steppers pass by resting on a landing.

* Watch where you’re going! It’s steep.

* Don’t overdo it. Remember, once you go down the steps, you still have to climb back up.

* Stop if you have chest or jaw discomfort, if you have difficulty breathing or if your knees start to hurt or grate.

* Don’t hang out on people’s private lawns. Don’t let your dogs hang out there either.

* Be alert for traffic.

* Don’t drive by the 4th Street Steps just to gawk at the beautiful people.

* Don’t mess with people’s rock and cactus-leaf counters.