How to walk in high heels?

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#31
Practice, practice, practice. Wear them around the house just for alittle bit and build up gradually.
if you want to wear them out start somewhere you don't have to stand or walk too much like out for dinner.
Also, try a really thick heel. They may not be as fashionable but are a much easier starting place than 9 inch killers. And you can get little sole gel pads that stick inside at the ball of your foot for extra padding.
Good luck! The pain will be worth it!!!!
 
#32
ame -- This is a great question. My advice in a nutshell is: practice, patience, posture and a good pair of gel inserts.

I got a pair of 3" pumps a few years ago and never thought I would wear anything higher. It took some time to get used to them ... I always felt awkward and couldn't get the balance right. I started by wearing them at home all the time to get used to balancing on them. I learned that the trick was to watch my posture and stand up straight. You also have to make sure you don't shuffle your feet along. Instead, walk heel to toe. Make sure the heel doesn't wobble under you as you step. If it does, take smaller, surer steps and stiffen your ankle a bit.

Over time, the awkwardness lessenend and I started easing into wearing my 3" heels to work. However, I always made sure to bring along a lower heeled pair just in case the heels started bothering me.

The other thing that helped was using gel inserts for the ball of my feet. I was living in NYC at the time and did a lot of walking. The pounding on my feet sometimes left a stinging feeling, which disappeared once I started using the inserts. Dr. Scholl's makes some great ones.

Once I felt comfortable with my 3" heels I started getting more daring. Over a year ago, I bought a pair of 4" CLs -- my highest pair at the time. Again, I eased into wearing them for short periods before I felt brave enough to wear them out of the house.

HTH! :flowers:
 
#33
Thanks girls!!! I own those inserts, I use them in running shoes when on trips like Vegas where Iwalk a lot. I will try them out in heels and hope they help.
 
#34
Walk around the house in heels all the time! A month or so ago I couldnt walk in heels to save my life but now since I have started wearing high shoes around the house it has become so much easier. If it hurts then try gel pads under the ball of your foot. Good luck :smile1:
 
#35
Walking in heels does take some getting used to, because the way you walk is completely different than in flats. Your posture instantly straightens up and the swing of your hips becomes much more pronounced. It helps if you try to put one foot in front of the other, like walking a balance beam, with your toes pointed straight forward.The best thing you can do is to get something like a Cuban heel rather than a stiletto to start and practice, practice, practice. Soon, you will feel "unnatural" going to the grocery store in sneakers.

I consider myself fortunate that my mother was very fashion forward and had tiny feet. I was running around the house in her 1980s secretary heels by the age of eight. :roflmfao:
 
#36
I read somewhere once that you should imagine a piece of string coming up through your spine and out the top of your head holding your body perfectly straight. It's all about posture and if you stand perfectly straight without slouching you should be able to balance.

I've never tried this invisible string trick myself, I just learnt by practicing around the house for 1-2 months, then I was fine.
 
#37
Umm...not to scare you but make sure you don't backslide after you get used to high heels. I used to wear four-inchers in my teens. During an athletic period, I stopped wearing heels and for a while, completely couldn't handle the pain of high heels anymore. Now, I think the key is buying the right shoes. It must be well-balanced (does not teeter while standing on its own), have a sufficiently supportive heel, have good padding inside and ideally, come with a platform. I live in four-inchers now but have discovered that I can't wear completely flat shoes any more. My feet feel weird. I think I've genetically modified my feet.
 
#38
corsetted said:
Umm...not to scare you but make sure you don't backslide after you get used to high heels. I used to wear four-inchers in my teens. During an athletic period, I stopped wearing heels and for a while, completely couldn't handle the pain of high heels anymore. Now, I think the key is buying the right shoes. It must be well-balanced (does not teeter while standing on its own), have a sufficiently supportive heel, have good padding inside and ideally, come with a platform. I live in four-inchers now but have discovered that I can't wear completely flat shoes any more. My feet feel weird. I think I've genetically modified my feet.
Click to expand...

My friend is like this. Her feet actually hurt if she wears flat shoes! :wtf:
 
#41
I can't wear flat flats because they usually have no support whatsoever. The soles are usually thin too. Even flats need a bit of a heel to make them comfortable.

I've been wearing heels since I was a teenager but there was a period where I didn't wear heels, mostly because I was in the military stationed oversees with nowhere to wear them to! I have found that it is slightly more difficult to wear them now than it was almost a decade ago but I have put on some weight which I think also affacts your ability to walk in heels, it makes it more difficult.

I got a pair of 5 inch python sandals the other day and I play to wear them around the house a lot until they become bearable and I get the guts to wear them out!

Good luck with the heel training!

June
 
#43
I can't walk for long in high heels, let alone the pain, I can't find the right balance, quite unstable as if I was a 3 legs chair instead of 4...basically this caused one of my most embarrassing moments a few weeks ago....
 
#44
Walking around the house is great practice! For me to get much more comfortable wearing heels I had to practice dancing in them around the house. I don't know why, but dancing in them in my living room was amazingly helpful.

In the words of one of my male coworkers "you have to learn to lead with more with your shins when you walk in heels."
 
#45
Interesting to hear that from a guy!

I debated buying a pair of ballroom dancing shoes with like a 2.5" heel since I figure it might be more comfy or something. Not sure if that's a good idea or not.
 
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