Science Says That Wearing High Heels Actually Strengthens Tendons In Your Calves And Knees, Helping You Walk More Efficiently In Flat Shoes
High heels make an outfit appear more polished and any leg look more sleek. But, the shoes are uncomfortable, which causes many people to avoid wearing them.
If you’re a certified high-heel hater, perhaps this study will have you reconsidering your stance on stilettos.
Researchers from the University of Texas at Austin and the Georgia Institute of Technology found that frequently wearing high heels may help you walk more efficiently in flat shoes by strengthening the tendons in your calves and ankles.
Every day for 14 weeks, the team of researchers had a group of eight men and women wear custom-made Chuck Taylor All-Star Converse sneakers with three-inch heels fitted onto them.
The team measured the length of each participant’s calf muscles and the stiffness of their Achilles tendons.
They also evaluated how much energy the participants used to walk on a treadmill for five minutes in both flat shoes and high heels.
Those who used less energy were more efficient walkers. After 14 weeks of walking in heels, the participants were tested again.
Some had given up wearing heels before the 14 weeks were up. They saw no changes in their legs or walking. The people who wore the heels consistently had shorter calf muscles and stiffer Achilles tendons than at the start of the study.
They also became more efficient when walking and used less energy to move at the same speed on the treadmill in high heels and flat shoes.
visoook – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual person
All in all, participants who wore high heels for more than 1,500 steps per day showed a nine percent decrease in their net metabolic power when walking in flat shoes.
So, a habit of wearing high heels may strengthen the tendons in the leg muscles. The angle of the elevated heel means that the calf muscles must work at shorter lengths, affecting muscle metabolism.
However, it is also noted that the study did not examine pain levels associated with wearing high heels.
Other research has indicated that wearing high heels can exert excessive strain on the back and feet, potentially leading to damage to the lower back, hips, and knees over time.
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