Heels and stairs

[Guest Mikkiapolis]

I'm posting this here in the hopes of getting feedback from both sides of the isle...

I happened to be walking behind two women walking up the stairway at work. They both had heels, perhaps 2-3 inches.

I found myself surprised that they both walked with the heels off the edge of the step. Only the ball of the shoe went onto the step, the heel never touched any step during ascent. (Of course they did on the landings)

I'm not RLE yet, but I've spent plenty of hours in heels. And walking like that on stairs never occurred to me! I've always stepped onto each step with the full shoe - ball and heel together on each step.

So which is it? Or is either way ok? I'd hate to out myself for walking wrong in a stairway!

Or is this one of those "which way should the toilet paper roll go" issues that different people just do differently?

[Carolyn Marie]

I don't know if there is a "right way" to do it, hon, but I've always used the ball-only method. It just seemed easier and more secure. Going down, though, I plant the heel, too, and hold tight to the railing.

Carolyn Marie

[Guest Haileyruso]

This video has all the basics of walking in heels:

http://www.youtube.com/user/amiclubwear?v=-NsqfS1wU7M

[Guest Jenth]

I learned to walk (and dance) in heels from dancers (like tap dancers, not strippers), so I don't know if it's "THE ONLY WAY" but I also use ball only method. I generally keep my weight to the ball of my foot in heels anyways, kinda like tiptoeing. It doesn't seem to kill my feet as much and i'mm not trying to balance on the stiletto.

Love,

Heathy

[Guest JessicaM1985]

Thank you Hailey for that video. I have 3" pumps that scare me to death any time I try to wear them, but they look so cute with some of my outfits that it's almost a crime if I don't wear them. Also that video helped show me that I need to walk more properly in them. I tend to put all my weight down in them evenly with each step and I have a pretty wide stride, so this should help make things a bit easier for me and my walk won't seem as funky.

[Guest Mikkiapolis]

Hmm. The video posted by Haileyruso shows the heel on each step when going up (except for one step when the potential for a fall was illustrated).

Some other videos showed no heel on the step, others showed full shoe on each step. So going up it seems that perhaps either is acceptable.

Down: other videos had consensus to always plant the full shoe (for safety). Some further recommended putting the foot at an angle to ensure the whole shoe is on the step.

And using the handrail seems to always be recommended, again for safety. Any other comments from experienced stiletto stair-masters?

[Guest]

Definitely heels off of the stairs for me. The angle of the foot is a bit extreme to be stepping up and having your toes pointed down. I find myself walking on tiptoe frequently when wearing heels because of soft ground or uneven terrain, so going upstairs tiptoe isn't an issue.

Now getting down stairs in heels? I just roll up in a ball and bounce down. Is there a better way?

Love, Megan

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Heels? It seems the heels in the video (this and others) are extremely high platform heels, yikes! - one of the hardest to learn to use. Regular heels? Just learn walk by touching down the heel first and then rolling most of the weight to the ball of the foot. Also strappy shoes like sandals really move around on you - THAT is what will trip you up! Pumps are more solid. And the smaller the contact area at the heal, the more it is likely to turn on you when you relax your ankles too much.

To learn easier? Start with low heals and work up to those bad boys! FUN

And the hard part? You need to have shoes that fit well. The weight of your body is transferred forward,- and the taller the heels, the more to the front. THAT is what makes walking in heels tiring, the front loading - that and STANDING in heels. The shape of the shoe can cause the toes to painfully wedge forward into the front of the shoe. Watch women standing in heels a long time. We stand with one foot slightly off the ground and shifting back and forth - sometimes even slightly slipping off one of the shoes.

And the model strut? Not that easy. I recommend using that technique but modify it to match your comfort level, a straight line but not necessarily as narrow as shown in the videos (or even that slight crossing over).

The advice about using stairs, and about walking on carpet, slippery surfaces and especially grass lawns, is particularly good in the videos.

Wearing heals barefooted is DIFFERENT from wearing heels in slippery stockings.

Finally, like they say - practice. I always take a new pair of heels out on a practice run - like to the store to pick up a few groceries - before going somewhere like a party where it can be too late to find out they are too hard to walk in. And yes - be careful. very high heels are comfortable to use (without a lot of sitting) for an absolute maximum of two hours. After that they can really hurt, crippling really. GRIN - and you will go barefooted (not so glamorous).

As a recommendation? ALWAYS take a few band-aids in your purse for emergency action with blistering - especially at the heels and where straps cross over - the cushioned band-aids work really well.

Lizzy

[MackenzieB]

Definitely heels off of the stairs for me. The angle of the foot is a bit extreme to be stepping up and having your toes pointed down. I find myself walking on tiptoe frequently when wearing heels because of soft ground or uneven terrain, so going upstairs tiptoe isn't an issue.

Now getting down stairs in heels? I just roll up in a ball and bounce down. Is there a better way?

Love, Megan

B...B...But how do you manage to climb Shoe Mountain to get to those heels at the top?

[Guest]

Definitely heels off of the stairs for me. The angle of the foot is a bit extreme to be stepping up and having your toes pointed down. I find myself walking on tiptoe frequently when wearing heels because of soft ground or uneven terrain, so going upstairs tiptoe isn't an issue.

Now getting down stairs in heels? I just roll up in a ball and bounce down. Is there a better way?

Love, Megan

B...B...But how do you manage to climb Shoe Mountain to get to those heels at the top?

Silly Girl! Keep the highest heels at the bottom, of course!

[gennee]

Strangely enough when I first wore heels, it felt very natural. It's was as if I had worn them all my life. I watched the video and liked it. There were asome good pointers. Most important aspect is to walk natural.

[Guest Marlane]

Definitely heel off the stair. and more importantly, one step at a time.

[Imawoman]

I've noticed the heel off the stair thing as well, and I'm in London. I see it all day long because you can't travel around London without going up and down a few flight of stairs or 12 every single day, and every single girl I see seems to do it, but I'd guess that it depends on the heel.

[Guest LizMarie]

What's odd is that I've been watching women on stairs since I read this thread and the vast majority that I see are heel on the stairs walkers, both up and down the stairs. Really interesting.

[Guest LauraJen]

I haven't worn heels in a while, due to circumstances, but from what i remember i think I always used to have my heels off the stairs going up - if you get used to doing it that way you don't rely on the heels of the shoes on the way up, avoiding the risk of stepping too close to the edge and the heel slips off which could be disastrous. You should always hold on to the handrail in case you do fall as there is always a risk of falling (actually even when wearing no shoes at all, really) - it might not look as elegant but it might just prevent serious injury one day!

[Guest amanda_s]

Come on grab a skate board your heels and down you go fast and fun

amanda

[Guest Elizabeth K]

Ya know - I think I totally missed the point with my first reply.

Stairs. Heels. How do we,manage that?

I was BORN to wear heels! I have worn out my heels (when a cross dresser) because I wore them everywhere I could! LOVE my SHoES!

To answer, though - now that I have settled down and have been living as myself for a few years - I wear lower heels and sometime even FLATS!

AUGGGGGH

I know I know - terrible!

Anyway - no matter what the heel height - FULL shoe = front and heel - on every step! It's safer that way - at least for me.

Lizzy

[Guest JessicaM1985]

Also besides stairs, I've started to master the elusive art of driving while in heels. Braking and accelerating becomes an interesting activity at that point.

[Guest Mikkiapolis]

Having recently navigated stairs in (solid, tall) clogs, I think they deserve mention as an exception. I'm not sure if 2-inch clogs are classified as "heels" or not? But the safe way to deal with them on stairs seems to me to be: full shoe bottom on each step. Heel-off-step just doesn't seem/feel safe.

[Guest rikkicd64]

I guess I am one of the lucky few, my first pumps were terrific, just came natural to me to walk in them, I try to wear heels everyday.

Rikki...

[Guest KarenLyn]

I started wearing heels about 40 years ago. My mom and I wear the same size. I still had to think about it when it comes to stairs. I put my whole foot on the stair. There's just more stability that way.

Karen

[Guest]

I've paid a bit more attention since this thread started. Having bigger feet means that many steps are narrow. I doubt I've seen any too narrow for my whole foot, but if I put my whole foot on the stair, my toe is in danger of scuffing on the next step. And, if I place my heel on the stair, it also seems to put my foot at an awkward angle for climbing power.

Downstairs for me is the real challenge - having occasional vertigo makes it just a bit more difficult - and once again, big feet just don't fit comfortably on narrow steps. I usually walk downstairs slightly turned to one side so that my feet are angled on the stair, and definately hand on the handrail - vertigo can make me feel like I'm in a freefall already.

I'm probably giving in to my age group's typical problems with steadiness in these situations. But, I haven't had the opportunity to wear heels enough to stop now.

Love, Megan

[Charlize]

I loved heels and danced, climbed and spun in them but now i'm mostly in 1 1/2' at most. Just an older girl who still has ankles somehow. I don't think there is a right way. Ya just do it. Hold on to the rail though. That helps save bones.

Hugs, Charlie

[Guest Kate_Evelyn]

in my heels, i walk heels off the stairs going up. and i plant flat sideways going down. i am getting good at walking in them, but i need to work on my strides and strut.

[Guest Melissa~]

I have a heel story from today. Mind the tiny gap at elevators! Yep I stuck mine right in there, I have been oblivious to that gap because it's small size all my life...