First time walking in high heels. It was so easy

I finally went out to Payless to buy boots the other day, because it’s getting colder and I need to switch from sandals to boots.

I found a nice pair of tall black suede boots, just perfect to go with my full long skirts. Four-inch heels. No worries!

I went out with my friends and they were amazed that the first time in my life I ever walked in heels, I walked smoothly without the least difficulty. They said it looked as though I’d been walking in heels since I was 2 years old. Or were they just being nice? A couple of my gay guy friends told about the time they tried drag, but were unable to walk in heels.

I credit my dance training, which teaches upright poise, balance, and the ability of a body to move through space, move through life, any time, anywhere. Take dance class and move all through life gracefully.

I got more compliments on my new high-heeled boots when I wore them for an evening on the town the next night. I changed into them yesterday at work to walk over to Whole Foods for lunch, about a quarter mile. To get more practice walking around in them. There was some mild discomfort in the arches. It wasn’t too bad. When the enjoyment of looking stylish is strong enough to outweigh the slight level of discomfort, heels are worth it. Anything that earns me compliments is a winner. :smiley: I doubt I would be up for long journeys by foot in heels, however. They’re fine for short walks, a half mile max.

As I walked around shopping, feeling unusually tall, I was conscious that it made me stand out more, and this in turn inspired me to hold myself up high and be proud of my strong female power, to move with confidence and grace.

I don’t know that I would consider this a compliment. Heeled shoes are incredibly bad for your legs and back, and promote a very unnatural-looking gait.

Strangely enough I’ve been a woman since I was 13* and I can’t walk in heels well at all.

  • Figure menarche as the start of “womanhood” in this case

I know that they’re not really good for your feet/legs/back, but heels make you feel so good once in a while! I’ll wear flats when I’m old. :stuck_out_tongue:

Congrats on such a successful first time in heels, Johanna! Here’s to many more outings in wonderful, sexy heels and may you never trip (as I do reasonably regularly… le sigh).

As far as Im aware, heels only make you walk with a strange gait if they are TOO high. If you walk like a sponge - dipping at the knee, OR with a tipped appearance, choose a heel a half inch lower and see the difference!

Heels can DEFINITELY make you feel more sexy - and as you say if they increase your height - that too makes you feel like standing even straighter and taller!

Just to play both sides of the fennce however - I have a male friend who as it happens LOVES boots, BUT was the first to comment on how good a lady looked when we were our together - and she had flatties on! So it isnt JUST about the heels ALL the time!
:slight_smile:

Those, my dear, are called car shoes. Congrats on the find…I may need to take a trip down to payless myself :wink:

forgive me for asking but
what have you been wearing up until now?

That makes a certain amount of sense. I guess my beef is really more with the culture of high heels than with the OPs cheerfulness at being able to walk in 'em. Therefore, sorry about the hijack. :smiley:

I took ballet as a child and ballroom dancing in college, and I still can’t walk right in heels.

I love heels.

I’m pretty tomboyish overall, never wear make-up or pantyhose (ugh!) and I’m a million feet tall already so a set of heels really makes me tower over everyone.

But I love 'em, love how they make me feel and how they make my legs and ass look … yay for heels! Despite my utter grace-less-ness in all other ares of my life, I can walk very well in them and do so every chance I get. (Which is not often, as I bike a lot and people who wear heels on bikes are just asking for trouble.)

I, too, should get me some more.

I wonder how many people buying high-heeled boots at Payless this week will be Dopers …

I never had any trouble walking in heels either - I too did years of dance and gymnastic training, so maybe it helps with balance or something.

Anyhoo - good for you - your boots sound fab. But no more walking long distances in them! You’ll wreck the boots, and you’re feet will not be happy. Wear a nice low heel for cruising around, and save the heels for when you’re sitting, or only walking to the bar to get a cocktail. :wink:

I’m a bull in a china shop, once had a professional dance instructor give up on me within fifteen minutes of the lesson starting, yet I have never had a problem walking in heels. It’s probably just an inborn thing with little to do with any dance training.

I despise them, though and I think it’s probably been 15 or 20 years since I’ve even owned a pair.

I fail at being a woman. Heels are the death of me.

But then with having the flat feet and the swung-out gait, it’s not a surprise. I’ll stick with my sneakers and doc marten’s boots, and leave the heels for really, really spesh occasions.

Though I would like a nice pair of f*ck-me boots…

No offense to the well-heeled, but give me a woman in flats anyday.

I wear heels ALL THE TIME (except for working out). They do make you feel sexy. I’m short, so I love the feeling of being long-legged.

The 1/2 inch rule is SO TRUE! I cannot navigate a 4-inch heel, but 3 1/2s are perfect. I don’t like to go under 3".

Yeah, Kalhoun, thanks for mentioning that. I said four inches, but actually I’m wearing three and a half. It feels just right. The only thing that takes getting used to is being extra tall-- because I was plenty tall to begin with-- looking down at people I used to be eye-level with, but who cares, looking chic makes me happier than anything.

It isn’t just the height of the heels that makes it chic (remember those clunky platforms from the '70s? What were they thinking?), but the total look of the footwear, and how it fits with the rest of your outfit. For example, tall suede boots with a swirly long skirt, with lace trim at the hem. When all the components go together just right, I enjoy being a girl.

I can walk just fine in heels, thankyouverymuch.

::shrug::

Gay man who has never worn heels…but I cannot imagine them being comfortable. Might as well bind your feet like the Chinese (or was it Japanese?) women used to do.

High heels seem to be the equivalent of men’s neckties…uncomfortable, useless fashion.

Congrats.

I love the look of heels, and I envy women who are either blessed enough, or masochistic enough, to be able to wear them all day…but I very rarely wear heels, and I’ve got about an hour/two hour window in them before all I can think about is how much they hurt.

And if I continue in my foolishness, the balls of my feet are sore for like the next 24 hours. I wore a gorgeous pair of 3 1/2 inch heeled black boots to a wedding last month, and since I was the photographer, I rarely got a chance to sit…

Oh my God. Walking barefoot the next day, my feet were STILL sore.

So in response to the OP…I can walk perfectly fine in heels, quite gracefully, until they begin their inevitable torture.

sigh

I love them but I rarely, rarely wear them.

I know what you mean. It’s not just the height. They make your legs look more shapely and the perfect shoes with the perfect outfit…well…it’s just a great feeling. I’m very into ankle straps these days. I have slender ankles and they make me feel positively faaaabulous.

I really do like being a girl. I’m glad my niece is a girly-girl because it’s such a blast to buy her stuff. She will be very chic when she’s grown. Great taste, that kid!

Strappy sandals in warm weather, as I noted in passing in the OP. Last winter I wore flats, but now when I take out those flats and look at them… eew, El Frumpo, what was I thinking? It’s just so much more fun to look chic. It really builds my confidence, which makes me more attractive when I project it.