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How to Walk in High Heel Shoes

with Victoria Briseno

Nothing takes the sex appeal away from a sassy pair of heels than constant stumbling or a jilted walk. Check out this beginner's guide to walking in high heels, and the world will be your own personal catwalk before you know it.

Transcript: How to Walk in High Heel Shoes

High Heel shoes are more then just fashionable footwear and they do more then make you taller. When worn right, high heels can instantly change your posture to be more upright and they can even make your feet appear smaller. Oh yeah, and they look thinner too! But walking in them can be tricky if you don't do them right.

Hi, I'm Victoria Briseno, Miss Plus Texas 2007 and today I'm going to give you tips on how to correctly walk in high heel shoes.

Walk in Short Heels

The first thing I suggest is to start with a pair of small heels especially if you have never walked in heels before. After you pick out your shoes, practice just standing in your shoes. You'll notice right away your change in height and you'll also notice that your posture becomes more upright.

Practice Walking in the Heels

After you become accustom to your heels, it's time to practice walking around in them. Take your first step by placing your heel down first and then the sole. Try to make this motion quickly and smoothly. You want to walk with your toes pointing as straight ahead as possible.

High Heel Posture, Stride, and Gait

As you walk, keep your legs straight and close together as much as possible. You want to take smooth, even and small steps. Your stride in heels should be smaller than your normal stride. For extra balance, swing your arms with each step

The more you practice walking in them the better you'll do, the more confident you'll walk and you'll break in your shoes. Keep walking, change directions and make turns.

Walk Up and Down Stairs in Heels

Don't forget to practice walking up and down stairs. The best way to do this in heels is to use the stair rail or walk as close to it in case you loose your balance. Going down stairs, you want your entire sole and heel to firmly land at once with each step. Walking up, you want just the sole of your shoe to land on the stair.

Walk on Different Surfaces

After you practiced standing, walking and you've conquered stairs, it's time to tackle different surfaces. However, try to avoid walking on ice, slush, mud, grass, sand, gravel and grated surfaces. But do practice on hard surface floors, carpet, and sidewalks. If you're planning on dancing in high heels, you need to practice that too.

Beginner Tips for Walking in Heels

Okay, some tips to help you even more. When first starting out, the thicker the heel, the better. Try to avoid spike heels until you're comfortable in walking in heels.

If your heels have straps make sure you have them securely tightened. Start out with a rounded toe verses a pointed toe. And finally, avoid driving in heels. You won't have as much control and you can damage the heel of your shoe.

Just remember, mastering walking correctly in high heels is all about practice, practice, practice. The more you do it, the better you'll be at it. Thank you so much for watching! For more information please visit us on About.com.

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