Why Women Love High Heels

They are a phenomenon. They make feet look smaller, elongate the silhouette and make women look sexy. The paradox is that we buy organic food, exercise, and then damage our health every morning by squeezing our feet into these uncomfortable shoes. Why?

I ran into an acquaintance on the street – a hairdresser. She was rushing to work in court shoes with heels so high she could barely stand. When I casually remarked that my trainers were definitely more comfortable, she protested sharply. “Comfort isn’t the point at all. I’m short and a bit heavier – these shoes add a few centimetres and make me look slimmer. They also force me not to slouch and to walk upright, which adds even more height. Trainers can’t do that,” she said.

Yes, my friend, I thought to myself. You’ll change into something comfortable at work, but I would have to rush between meetings in heels all day long. And that is unthinkable on Prague’s streets. It’s not that I wouldn’t feel sexier in heels, but for now, comfort wins for me. What do other women say? “In heels, I feel seductive, desirable and confident.

Now that I have a baby, I wear them rather exceptionally. Focusing on a pram on Prague’s pavements while also keeping an eye on my heels is quite demanding. These days I prefer comfort and naturalness – with a little one, I simply want to enjoy ease. I wear heels a few times a year, when I’m going to an interesting meeting or the theatre. Then I choose medium to higher heels and really savour it,” says thirty-two-year-old Jitka. “I do feel sexy in heels, but I only wear them on special occasions.

In everyday life, I tend to avoid them, because even without them, at my height of 178 cm I’m usually the tallest person on the tram, and I don’t enjoy looking down at men’s bald spots,” laughs twenty-three-year-old Zuzana. For some women, high heels are more of a necessary evil they endure because of their job. Trainers simply don’t go with a suit, so comfort has to take a back seat. “They’re expected in my line of work, so I try to choose carefully. For regular meetings I opt for lower heels, around five centimetres; I wear higher ones only when it’s necessary given the social context,” admits twenty-eight-year-old PR manager Helena. According to her, choosing isn’t particularly difficult these days. Shops are overflowing with shoes of all shapes and heel heights – you just have to pick.

Why? Because of men!

“The phenomenon of high heels is definitely connected to men. Women wear them simply because they want to be attractive, and men really do like them,” claims psychologist Ludmila Stehlíková. And she’s right. Ask any man in your surroundings, and he’ll tell you that he always notices a woman in heels. When she’s wearing trainers, it’s often as if she doesn’t exist at all. “You can’t imagine what the sight of an upright woman with her chest pushed forward and her hips swaying does to a man. I’d have to be blind not to notice,” says twenty-six-year-old student Zdeněk.

That’s where heels are powerful. Whether we like it or not, they force us not to slouch. This naturally accentuates the bust, and because they don’t allow you to walk too fast, your gait suddenly becomes more graceful, including the gentle sway of the hips.

“In such shoes, women shift their centre of gravity by almost 25%. This highlights feminine proportions that men subconsciously perceive because they are important when evaluating female attractiveness,” says sexologist Laura Janáčková. Attractiveness is partly determined by a balanced waist-to-hip ratio, which informs men about female fertility and also about the fact that the woman is not currently pregnant. “The WHR indicator (Waist-Hip Ratio) should ideally be around 0.66–0.7 and has nothing to do with weight. In girls before puberty, who do not yet have reproductive capacity and lack hips, this number ranges between 0.85 and 1.

The situation is similar in older women, who cease to be fertile, lose their waist, and whose WHR thus again approaches 1,” explains Laura Janáčková. What does this have to do with heels? In male perception of attractiveness, it’s not so much about how slim women are, but rather about feminine curves – and heels are able to shape them correctly. “They also lengthen the legs, which men appreciate as well,” the expert adds.

Heels for better sex?

Even a layperson might assume that if women look sexier in heels, they arouse desire in men. And desire is, unsurprisingly, the driving force of sex. This logically raises the question: do heels make us have more sex? Do they make sex different? Heels and sex are a grateful topic for various researchers, and the media often present clear-cut conclusions: heels support sex. This was found, for example, by Italian urologist Maria Cerruto from the University of Verona. She studied the effect of heels on the muscles of the entire body in sixty women, and her study was even published in the professional journal European Urology.

The doctor claims that heels stimulate the muscles of the lower abdomen and pelvic floor, which are absolutely crucial during sexual intercourse. According to her, ideal shoes for women are those that form a fifteen-degree angle with the ground, which corresponds to roughly six- to eight-centimetre heels. Walking in them requires engaging the lower abdominal and pelvic floor muscles, which are active during sex and also affect the uterus, bladder and intestinal tract. The connection between heels and a better sex life is also supported by lifestyle sociologist Jana Duffková from Charles University: “High heels are sexy because they intensify the impression of legs as a highly erogenous zone and are often even a kind of fetish.

The foot itself is considered an erotic and sensual part of the body; its admirers included Casanova, Baudelaire and Goethe. And Sigmund Freud considered the female shoe a symbol of the vagina.” Sexologist Laura Janáčková, however, is more cautious in assessing the relationship between shoes and sex. “There are many myths and superstitions surrounding this, and I know of no serious research that would prove a positive influence of heels on women’s sex lives. Still, I dare say that from the perspective of some men, stilettos really do increase sex appeal and make women more desirable.”

A boost to self-confidence?

Back to my hairdresser friend rushing to work in stilettos. Besides adding a few centimetres, slimming the body and forcing her to walk upright, heels supposedly have another significant positive effect – they increase self-confidence. “As soon as I feel taller, slimmer and have my back straight, I suddenly feel much better about myself,” she says. There is probably a grain of truth in this, since self-confidence is indeed strengthened primarily by situations in which a person feels good and is able to praise themselves – and this is certainly one of them. However, buying self-confidence in the form of footwear is nonsense.

“I know several women from my practice who base their self-confidence on buying clothes or shoes. It may work in the short term, but in the long run heels have nothing to do with it, and there is usually a more serious problem behind such purchases,” says psychologist Ludmila Stehlíková. My hairdresser friend wouldn’t step outside without stilettos, even though she actually suffers in them internally. Why doesn’t she give in and give herself a break? In other shoes, she simply doesn’t feel sexy. And that is her priority. “I can understand that – beauty and self-confidence come at a price, and something has to be sacrificed,” says Czech fashion designer Jiřina Tauchmanová. She herself wears heels between four and eight centimetres.

And what does she consider a high heel? Shoes that are at least seven centimetres high or more. Scientists at Oxford’s St Barnabas Clinic discovered as early as eight years ago that women are literally obsessed with high heels. According to them, only a third of respondents actually enjoy wearing high-heeled shoes. However, every tenth woman is willing to endure pain in uncomfortable shoes if she likes them and feels attractive in them.

Based on the research results, scientists at the time estimated that three quarters of women would have serious health problems with their lower limbs by the age of sixty. But women adore high heels, so French designer Christian Louboutin can easily afford to design shoes with twenty-centimetre stilettos. “I’ve heard they hurt your feet, but women want them,” he explains.

Comfort will win!

Some women are literally obsessed with life on a high heel. And it’s not just a whim of celebrities or wealthy ladies who no longer know what to buy. Many “ordinary” women also need at least one pair of stilettos per season for their happiness, and they’re willing to shop in much more expensive stores than they could normally afford. But we can’t generalise. You don’t only meet women with extreme heel heights on the street. You also see much more “sober” ones, who prefer more comfortable heights or flat trainers.

How is that possible? Don’t these passers-by want to be sexy? “The popularity of high heels is linked to age and life situation. Single women wear heels more often – consciously or subconsciously trying to be more attractive to the opposite sex. Among women in relationships, comfort tends to win more often,” states Ludmila Stehlíková. According to sociologist Jana Duffková, wearing high heels also reflects changing life values.

“A young, childless woman tends to focus primarily on herself, including her image. With age, this value doesn’t necessarily decline, but values linked to practical needs often come to the fore. You need to do the shopping, and carrying two full bags on high heels is impossible. In addition, feet age too, and walking in heels may become a greater burden than a woman is willing to bear. In the dilemma between beauty and comfort, she is no longer willing to prioritise beauty at any cost,” the expert says. However, one group that certainly won’t give up heels is Hollywood and its stars. Perhaps the biggest shoe-shopping and stiletto-wearing mania was unleashed in the late 1990s by the creators of the series Sex and the City. The main character famously declared that she wouldn’t even take her dog out without stiletto pumps by Spanish designer Manolo Blahnik – and queues instantly formed, even though the cheapest pairs cost around $1,000.

The character of Carrie Bradshaw gave the world a new trend that goes hand in hand with high heels and has even reached us: shoe obsession. Models, actresses and singers are no longer interested in dresses, but in shelves full of shoes, in front of which they pose for various magazines. Success is then measured by how many pairs of shoes they own. “Imitating celebrities undoubtedly has a strong influence on shaping people’s outward appearance, and this also applies to the fashion of high heels,” believes Jana Duffková.

Many women won’t admit it, but fashion is still a decisive diktat for them. At least that’s what they admitted to scientists from the already mentioned Oxford St Barnabas Clinic. Most of them stated that fashion trends determine what they put on their feet. And so they wear practically anything, of any height, even if heels cause them suffering and health problems.

Health is important, but…

The women I spoke to while writing this article agreed on one thing: heels are like a drug. You put them on once… and suddenly you never take them off again. The popularity of height is partly linked to life in today’s visual world, where people judge you by how you look. Heels significantly underline a woman’s personality and also reveal a lot about their owner: style, taste, degree of eccentricity, meticulousness, and even financial means. For some women, shoe obsession is so strong that it easily overshadows another modern trend – health.

They spend money on luxury cosmetics, quality hair products, organic food… Stilettos don’t fit this trend at all, yet they continue to multiply in wardrobes, and women will probably never stop suffering for them. But try telling some women anything about the harmful effects of heels – we humans are masters at defending our habits and indulgences. “I don’t smoke. I don’t drink. So why shouldn’t I wear heels? That won’t kill me.” These are the kinds of arguments used to justify stilettos. “In different stages of a woman’s life, wearing heels may even be linked to the use of luxury skincare products.

Why should a woman buy luxury creams and shampoos and spend significant amounts of money if the proverbial cherry on the cake is missing – high-heeled shoes?” asks sociologist Jana Duffková. For some women, heels are the meaning of life. They wouldn’t give them up even if experts issued the direst warnings. And should they give them up at all? Perhaps it would be enough to follow one simple rule: nothing should be overdone. Heels, centimetres, or any other pleasures in life.

HISTORY OF HIGH-HEELED SHOES

In the distant past, footwear served a purely practical purpose – protecting feet from uneven terrain or cold. The most primitive form of such protection involved wrapping the foot in grass or leaves. In the 5th century BC, the Greeks began using high leather footwear, and during the Roman Empire, the first specialised military shoes with thick soles emerged. Ancient Roman actors lived “on a high foot” as early as 200 BC – sandals on elevated platforms lent them grandeur in classical tragedies.

At the end of the 16th century, footwear on high platforms with an open heel, known as Spanish chopines, became fashionable in Venice. This type of footwear originated in ancient Greece, where it was worn by actors and known as the cothurnus. Literary sources state that the platform height reached up to 77 centimetres, meaning women had to be supported while walking. The base of the sole was made of wood or cork and covered with leather or velvet. Some sources claim that high heels as we know them today were introduced into fashion by Catherine de’ Medici before her wedding to Henry of Orléans.

Others state that fashion in Europe was significantly influenced by the accession of Louis XIV to the French throne. The extravagant life of majesty and pomp supposedly forced courtiers to compete in fashion excesses. A distinctive feature separating noble aristocracy from commoners was the red heel, introduced into fashion by Louis XIV himself. As a symbol of higher social status, it remained popular until the French Revolution. Shoes with heels typically 63–115 millimetres high were worn by both men and women. Women’s shoes in their modern form were perfected in 1952 with the appearance of court shoes.

Fashion designer Salvatore Ferragamo then added the famous final touch when, in 1955, he elevated women’s shoes onto stilettos and had actress Marilyn Monroe wear them. Today, shoes by Manolo Blahnik, Jimmy Choo and brands such as Gucci, Prada and YSL are considered fashionable.

High heels are truly sexy because they enhance the overall impression of legs as a highly erogenous zone and are often even a kind of fetish.

Source: Obuvnické muzeum (www.muzeum.zlin.cz) a diplomová práce Tamary Blažkové - Autorská tvorba z usně na pozadí historie obouvání a galanterních výrobků (www.is.muni.cz)

Source: www.maminka.cz
Image by Robson Wojcik from Pixabay