I see this a lot, especially with younger women. They’ll be standing, waiting for their latte or paying for groceries or whatever, and they’ll have their legs kind of crossed, so left foot is crossed over to the right or vice versa. Is that just a position that is more anatomically comfortable, or is it a learned behavior? I never see men do this, ever.
Interesting, I’ve never noticed that. Closest I’ve seen is the “selfie” pose, where you put one leg behind the other for a slimmer profile.
I find myself doing this when I’ve been standing at my standing desk too long.
My first thought, however, went directly to “posing”.
Learned behavior. It’s an attractive pose that was pushed heavily by celebrities. It gives the illusion of narrower knees which in turn make the hips appear more curvy and the waist appear narrower. Look up ‘crossed ankles pose’ and you can find history on it.
Oh, these young girls.They also do duck lips, and there’s no explaining that.
I just stood up and tried this, and it is more anatomically comfortable. Obviously only speaking for myself (a woman). Standing often hurts my back, and crossing my legs at the ankle makes it not hurt so much.
Disclaimer - my entire knowledge of this comes from a stupid elective class that I took way back in college. This is not my area of expertise.
An “open” stance vs. a cross-legged stance when standing has a different non-verbal meaning in men and women.
In men, an open stance is a more aggressive stance. Instinctively, it’s a “stand your ground” stance. It means “I’m not moving” and can be taken as a sign of aggression. For men, crossing your legs is a defensive stance, as in “I don’t want you to kick me in the nuts” stance.
In women, the meaning is slightly different. An open stance is generally a more aggressive stance, but it can also indicate physical attraction (i.e. the woman opening her legs to indicate sexual willingness). A closed or legs crossed stance indicates sexual unwillingness. But a closed stance can also indicate submissiveness, or a lack of confidence or assertiveness.
These are kinda general instincts though, and humans don’t always act on instinct, so do not take these as reliable indicators as much of anything. If you see a women standing with her legs crossed, it might indicate that she is lacking confidence, or who knows, she might just have to pee. And, as mentioned upthread, there are also learned behaviors such as posing that might override any natural instinctive stance.
Men who try to use a woman’s stance as an indicator of attraction will also likely find it a rather unreliable indicator.
I do this a lot, and am always a little embarrassed when I catch myself. I just find it to be a very comfortable way of standing. I also prefer to sit with one foot tucked under my butt. I’m 38 and not a generally fancy lady or prone to posing. It’s purely a comfort thing.
I sit this way, too!! It has to do with the way my back feels as well. Sticking a foot under my butt redistributes the weight or something like that, and it feels more comfortable.
My immediate thought was that it is related to the ridiculous shoes that many women wear.
So I texted the lil’wrekker. She claimed she never did something so ridiculous. I assured she did and gave her examples of when I’ve seen her doing it. So…she decided it must be when she feels awkward.
I told her, luckily she looks cute doing it. She was happy with that.
Oh, she’s 19.
Maybe something to do with uncomfy shoes? My feet are archless blobs. When I stand for a long time, I’ll sometimes cross my legs and stand on the outer edge of my feet. It somehow feels good.
Me three on the “sitting with my leg under my butt” thing. I noticed I have been standing more in a “T” shape lately, with one heel aligned with the arch of the other foot. I end up putting my weight on one leg but very balanced and comfortable. Probably the fat girl’s version of crossing at the ankles.
Babe Ruth famously crossed his legs while at bat. Take a good look at the first picture in this article.
Bigger version:
Those are after a swing, he’s spun his body around causing his legs to cross.
I always did this too. A word of caution: Make sure your lower leg hasn’t fallen asleep before you stand up. The fall can be unpleasant.
It would work better in pants or a pencil skirt. In the long full skirts I favor, it would have less effect and make the stance a little less stable. So I rely on the classic T feet stance; it works well for the posture, curve of the hips, and overall poise.
Concur.
This video shows Ruth’s stance:
Not sure you could even swing a bat with legs crossed.When I saw fashion models doing this for photos, I always thought it was because they were bursting for the loo.