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Original poster

High Heels 👠

80 replies

GADDay · 16/01/2022 22:30

This is not a TAAT.

I read this article www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4735171/

I have long since chucked out all of my heels. I can remember having to wear them at work (dark ages when we had to wear a skirt).

On the face of it, they are like modern torture devices (light-hearted). Women are prone to accidents and long term injuries seem to be prevalent. I would never encourage my children to wear them...

Wondering if they will slowly start to disappear, along the lines of clogs and foot binders?

OP posts:
escapingthecity · 17/01/2022 09:50

I haven't worn heels since my first pregnancy 3 years ago. Basically only worn slippers and trainers in the pandemic years. Never wearing heels again.

notthemum · 17/01/2022 09:53

@GADDay

I think my hobbit feet prevented me from ever finding a comfy pair.

I honestly can't fathom them being comfortable. Perhaps they are not the domain of the broad of foot 🤔 😉

🤣😂. This made me laugh. Especially them not being the domain of the broad of foot. After many years of suffering I finally found some that are not too bad. I do however have an amazingly gorgeous pair of lace up sandals which fit perfectly. I haven't worn them out because I haven't been anywhere to wear them. Still wish I had bought them in all the colours though when I had the chance.
DaisyWaldron · 17/01/2022 09:55

I'm 46 and have owned three pairs in my life, and never intend to wear any ever again. I grew up when they weren't really a big thing, but that didn't stop them from coming back into fashion and lots of people keep wearing them, so I don't think they'll die out any time soon.

Interested in this thread?

Then you might like threads about this subject:

Clothing
blobby10 · 17/01/2022 10:45

I love wearing heels - they make me stand taller as with being 5ft 9" already, heels make me taller than a lot of men so I am more able to deal with them at work Grin. Unfortunately I'm not able to cope with the heels I used to be able to wear - max height these days is about 2-2.5" whereas in my 20s I was comfortable all day in 3.5" heels!

DappledThings · 17/01/2022 10:59

I'm 42. Only ever wore them to weddings and the occasional other night out. Can't see myself wearing a pair even to a wedding now. Always been agony after about an hour max and I reckon it would be 10 minutes now.

BogRollBOGOF · 17/01/2022 12:15

[quote GADDay]@iglpgl yup I agree that our bodies are not designed to walk around on tiptoes.[/quote]
I naturally walk on my toes. Anything flatter than a well-structured trainer is very uncomfortable. Ballet pumps are awful for feet and women end up ruining their toes trying to keep the daft things on or risking foot injuries like planatar fasciitis because there's no shock absorbtion in the heel. I've never been able to walk in a slip on shoe without it grating the skin off my ankles in minutes (I have a wide forefoot and slim heel so if I can get my toes in, the backs are sloppy).

My most comfortable smart shoe is a 2" heel with straps over the arch. My feet are very short so 3.5" is the highest I can wear because there's no more length in my forefoot.

I feel clumpy in flat shoes. With short feet and muscular legs I feel a much more elegant 5'4" with a bit of a heel. Wearing a dress with pumps looks too chunky for anything more than very casual style.

I never wore a heel that wasn't suitable for dancing in or standing in all day at work.

towers14 · 17/01/2022 12:42

Anybody watched The Apprentice recently, all the women, apart from one, are in identical tight dresses and ridiculously sky high heels, which would look so outdated in a modern workplace. Meanwhile the men are all in flats of course. My dd wears heels for the obligatory photo and then on go the trainers...bloody love that. I always wear heels on a night out but they are getting shorter.

londonmummy1966 · 17/01/2022 13:07

I have to go to quite a lot of formal events with antediluvian dress codes so I have 4 pairs of day heels and pairs of evening heels but if I am going out to please myself I prefer flats. M&S did a pair in suede a few years ago that looks elegant and is comfortable so I do a constant trawl of ebay to buy them up when they appear. I have 3 beige pairs and 2 black pairs in waiting.... If I'm wearing flats on a night in town it also gives me the option of walking home with DH if we feel like it. It's great to have the same freedom he has sometimes.

MrsBaublesDylan · 17/01/2022 14:56

I will never wear heels again. In fact, only have one pair of shoes that aren't trainers and they are walking boots.

I love trainers and have them in lots of colours and styles, but they suit my athletic shape, the clothes I wear and the fact that I am quite a physically busy most days.

The most uncomfortable shoe I ever wore was the ballet flats. They slip off, no grip, no insulation on cold floors, hurt my lower back and are so fucking boring to look at (imo).

MrsBaublesDylan · 17/01/2022 15:01

@towers14

Anybody watched The Apprentice recently, all the women, apart from one, are in identical tight dresses and ridiculously sky high heels, which would look so outdated in a modern workplace. Meanwhile the men are all in flats of course. My dd wears heels for the obligatory photo and then on go the trainers...bloody love that. I always wear heels on a night out but they are getting shorter.
I noticed that!! They had an identikit style. They had to totter around for an entire day wearing restrictive clothes and shoes.

I don't understand it.

Haudyourwheesht · 17/01/2022 16:57

I was out for a rare night out a couple of months ago in a bar where the young folk go. I was wearing a pair of (not very high) heeled boots and literally everyone else was in flats: either trainers or chunky flat boots. Lots of dresses and crop tops, so this was a dressed up crowd, just no heels. Most people were teens / early twenties.

I don't think they'll disappear altogether, but having seen many young women walk home barefoot, heels in hand, clearly freezing and in agony, it's nice to see that there are now options.

SliceOfCakeCupOfTea · 17/01/2022 17:05

Would have cost me my job if I did that and saying no to something 'basic' in that type of role would probably have stopped me from getting another job.

Elphame · 17/01/2022 17:09

I miss my heels. They are not appropriate for walking the dog but I can still run for a bus in 3" easily.

They are still an integral part of my wardrobe and I do find them very comfortable unlike some of my flats that give me blisters

Laiste · 17/01/2022 18:52

All the jobs i've ever done have been standing up and rushing about jobs. In my late teens one of my jobs entailed running up and down a flight of stairs to serve each customer and I would do it in 6'' heels all day Shock

Day out shopping in London - heels.
Night out - heels.
Taking the tube into work - heels.
Running for the bus - heels.
Work on your feet all day - heels.
Winter boots - high heeled ones.
High wedges for summer.

The only flats i owned for about 20 years were flip flops for the beach.

Then i did a long stint in flats or v low heels and bugger me i can't do high heels anymore! They feel weird they look weird and i feel old fashioned in them.

And it's ok. Because everyone else around me lives in flats too. My grown up DDs go out clubbing in trainers. Nice :)

And now i own TWO pairs of Nikes! ShockGrin

KurtWilde · 17/01/2022 19:06

I love heels and don't find them uncomfortable. I wear them pretty much anywhere, unless I'm walking the dogs or going somewhere that will involve running about with the DC in which case I favour a converse. I prefer a heeled boot rather than a shoe, but I have a few pairs of both kinds.

Original poster
GADDay · 18/01/2022 04:58

I dont really equate a heeled boot with high heels. They often have a platform and the shoe part is usually boot like - wide and comfy.

High heels on the other hand have a pointy heel, toe and possibly murderous tiny little straps.

Boots are good, heels bad IMO

OP posts:
KurtWilde · 18/01/2022 08:39

@GADDay my boots have pointy heels not platform ones. I don't like the platform style they're clunky.

Kshhuxnxk · 18/01/2022 08:45

You like them wear them, you don't then don't. No wonder this world is in such a mess. Can no one really make simple decisions for themselves but need to rely on what's in the media?

Mischance · 18/01/2022 08:46

They are the work of the devil - they are similar to the Chinese tradition of binding women's feet.

Throw them away. They damage your feet - and as someone who fractured her foot, I know how precious healthy feet are. They increase the risk of spraining or breaking your ankle. They alter your centre of gravity and weight distribution and cause back problems.

They are sheer lunacy. I have no idea at all why anyone might wear them. Would men put themselves through this?

LadyPropane · 18/01/2022 08:50

I wear wedges, but other than that my shoes are all flat.

I think heels are starting to look a bit old fashioned, but that doesn't mean they'll disappears. These things are often cyclical. They'll come back.

ElectraBlue · 18/01/2022 08:53

I live in London and I still see many young women wearing really high heels on nights out (and looking fairly silly I would say as they just can't walk in them...). Frankly the bare legs, fake tan and high heel sandals is not a good look...but you can see it everywhere on Friday/Saturday night.

I think ultimately it is an individual choice but I never understand why you would wear shoes that you simply can't walk in and that are going to make you uncomfortable all night and will prevent you from truly enjoying yourself.

There is still a lot of conditioning in thinking that this is 'attractive' and 'sexy;.

I never wear high heels because I want to be able to move and also because I don't feel safe going around at night in shoes that could restrict my movements .

KurtWilde · 18/01/2022 08:59

They are sheer lunacy. I have no idea at all why anyone might wear them.

Because some of us like them. That's pretty much it.
No ones twisting anyone's arm to wear something they don't like.
If you don't like them, don't wear them.

I can't understand why people wear ridiculously expensive trainers, they're not something I'd ever want to wear but each to their own.

madisonbridges · 18/01/2022 09:01

I love a heel. As I get older, and fatter, maybe they're not as high as they were, but nothing makes your legs look longer and slimmer than a nice court shoe. And trousers hang better too. Doc Martens will never be as elegant as a heel, sorry. And complete flats are terrible for your feet.

Flats, in particular ballet pumps, were in when Diana was around and she was so tall. But heels soon came back into fashion. I don't know if they're out of fashion, but if they are, they'll be making a return in the not too distant future.

ClaudineClare · 18/01/2022 09:08

Once upon a time women would not have been seen dead without their corsets on. Hopefully heels are going the same way as corsets now.

madisonbridges · 18/01/2022 09:16

Once upon a time women would not have been seen dead without their corsets on. Hopefully heels are going the same way as corsets now.

I think a lot of people wear corsets but just in a different form.