To think that walking in high heels is a genetically determined skill? (Inspired by sandal thread)

[Salmotrutta]

Because I have never been able to do it.

I literally look ridiculous walking in them - clumping along like a spectacularly unco-ordinated clown.

I have also turned ankles trying to walk in heels (ouch).

So now I don't even try excepts for very small wide heels!

How do people do it??

[HopelesslyDevotedToShoes]

I have several pairs of platform wedges and flatforms. I love them even my trainers have a small lift to them.

I don't like stilettos though, I own one pair and they are strictly, ahem, inside shoes

[WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes]

I used to be fine in them as a teen, gradually worn them less and less as an adult, having had lectures from various physios etc over my back trouble. I still wore them for special occasions such as weddings until recently, then I decided, no, enough is enough and got rid of them all. I wear flats all the time now, even for weddings etc as even wedges and low heels throw my posture out and make me ferl uncomfy. It's so liberating to be comfortable all the time.

[OnlyLovers]

The quite annoying book How to Walk in High Heels devotes quite a bit of space to this, unsurprisingly.

Her top tip is aisle-gliding: going to the supermarket in heels and basically using your trolley for support as you learn and practise.

The principles someone mentions above are good ones: shorter steps and let the hips swing more. Also try to keep your legs as straight as you can (this helps/necessitates the hip-swinging).

[Apatite1]

I wear four inch heels to work every day. I'm a short arse, it's the only way I can look anyone in the eye! I have decades of practice...

[Salmotrutta]

If I tried the supermarket aisle gliding I think I'd see the trolley sliding off with me clinging on trying not to fall flat on my face!

Someone actually wrote a book about walking in high heels? Was it a very short book?

[OnlyLovers]

It's not JUST about walking in high heels. It's about being a 'modern woman' or some such. Here

[AccordingToOurRecords]

I think the secret is the type of shoe. I can walk in them but I have narrow feet and so I tend to walk out of most court type high shoes. If they are a more secure fitting type it's much easier. I would give it a go in high heeled boots, very easy.

[Sighing]

I'm just not a person that pulls off anything remotely elegant. I've never owned heels. Best luck to all you heel wearers!

[OnlyLovers]

I agree, boots are easier. They seem to hold your ankle steadier.

I'm also better in a higher but sturdier heel than a narrow one; even a kitten heel is very wobbly, IMO.

[ActiviaYoghurt]

The shoes that have a strap over are good for practice. M&s and Hobbs are good

[Pantone363]

My rather glamorous mother taught us to walk in heels at 14. She wouldn't allow us to wear them if we couldn't walk in them properly "there's nothing more unsightly than a woman clumping around in heels darling"

I can still run in heels now!

We also weren't allowed to wear tights past 16 (stockings only)

[Pantone363]

Agree practice in heels with straps across the front (not around the ankle)

Also score the bottom of any new heels (not Louboutins!) with a sharp penknife in a cross cross pattern to stop them slipping.

[RachelWatts]

There are very few high-heeled shoes I can manage.

Hush puppies are about the comfiest, but a bit frumpy.

My favourites are Ruby Shoo - the heels are a bit more solid and the toes are rounded so don't squash my feet. Plus I like the slightly quirky style.

[Basketofchocolate]

Never buy any heels that are taller than your little finger (the actual heel part) if you want to be able to walk in them for any amount of time.

The trick is to walk 'tall' and normally and probably slower than you would in flats.

For me, I have high arches so find completely flat shoes uncomfortable. I prefer shoes with a bit of a bend that supports my foot better.

Reading this though......I used to dance for hours in heels and am having trouble with my knees now am getting old older, so maybe that's what it is!

[Salmotrutta]

Your mum was right Pantone - I see an awful lot of clumping females stomping around in high heels.

It does look daft if you can't do it properly and I can count on one hand the number of colleagues and friends I have who can pull it off.

[Lurkedforever1]

I don't wear them that often, and to be honest never bothered with stilettos, but more practicality than anything under 4" being uncomfortable by theory, and being tall never felt them necessary as an improvement. More likely to be put off by thin straps or my weird feet not often getting a correct fit in anything that doesn't adjust.
Yanbu to think it's possibly genetic though. I'm tall and straight up and down, also blessed with natural balance plus do a sport involving balance and posture. And even sports I don't do eg skating, skiing I can pick up basic skills in quicker than most. This also includes walking in heels. Not suprisingly dd has inherited both my build and balance and I suppose from that and shared habits learnt good posture/ balance. As despite being 11 and not allowed to generally wear heels for anything moving about and never high, she's always been able to walk nicely in them.
Plus I think the build gives a certain illusion, even at 3 dressing up in mine, her long thin limbs made her appear more balanced than a 3yr old with chubby shorter legs, which combined with the natural build giving advantage made it look like an inherited ability.

[PatricianOfAnkhMorpork]

I probably wear heels 3-4 times a week at work. Mostly a kitten or mid-height these days as since getting fat I can't wear my 4" ones as my centre of gravity has changed. Almost all of them are stiletto and the thinner the better as I love a pencil heel.

I've always been able to walk and if need be run in them but the trick is practice, don't think about how to walk (its the same just shorter strides) and stand straight. But they must fit properly and be secure at the heel. Mostly its walking with confidence.

I see far too many women where the shoes are too big (gap at the heel you could get a finger in) and too high so they are wobbling about like Bambi on ice. Not a good look and the way to a knackered ankle.

[gymbummy]

In my younger days I went everywhere in sky high stilettos (including 15 hour shifts in a care home - not entirely sure how I got away with that...). I sneered at the idea of wearing trainers outside of a gym. Practice made perfect and I could walk easier in 5 inch heels than flats, my squashed hamstrings meant the stretch of my feet flat on the floor was quite uncomfortable.

How horrified I would have been had I known that 15 years later I'd be permanently attached to my nice comfy Sketchers (I'm not even 100% against the idea of the 'Hotter Comfort Concept' (even having read the other thread on them earlier).

God knows what I'll be wearing when I'm a pensioner...

[BettyCatKitten]

Salmotrutta I've never been able to walk in high heels either. I take comfort in the fact that they're very bad for your pelvis, back and knees

[ApprenticeViper]

I couldn't walk in stilettos at all until I was about 21. It wasn't the height, as I had plenty of four and five inch block heels, so it must have been the thickness (or lack thereof) of the heel.

I finally mastered it, and can still wear them now if I have to, but my current favourite pair have a four inch block heel and they are soooooo much comfier than stilettos!

I agree it's about taking shorter, slightly slower steps than you would in flat shoes, heel down first then toe, and the hip-swing/tightrope thing too.