Wearing High Heels

If you frequently wear high heels there is something you might need to do before putting on your flats.

It might be something you noticed in the past. You often wear high heels and find it can be a little painful when you wear flats or walk around bear footed. For years doctors have felt that frequently wearing high heels could lead to a shortening of the muscles in the back of the leg and this shortening could be causing the pain when you switch to flats. But they were never able to prove it until now.

Scientist looked at the calf muscles of women that frequently wore heels. An MRI scan showed no difference in calf muscles between them or those who mostly used flats. But when they examined those same muscles with an ultrasound they found shorter muscle fibers in the women who mostly wore high heels.

They also noticed these same women had thicker and stiffer tendons behind their heels. This combination is why it can be painful to switch to flats or even walk around without shoes if you've been wearing heels for a while. But there are things you can do to help. One is to alternate flats and heels when you can. The other is to do calf and heel stretches in your bear feet during the day, especially on days you wear heels. The main thing is to make sure fashion doesn't become painful.