It's not a secret that wearing high heel shoes is bad for you. Heels stress the ball of the foot and puts your body in an awkward, unnatural position. This makes most people bend their hips and spine forward, which in turn creates pressure on the lower back, calves, and hips, resulting in cramping and pain (when not properly dealt with). Last but not least, it affects the nerve ends that lead to many parts of the body including the brain, which means high heels can actually be the cause of emotional distress.
This is all fair and good, and not much can be disputed. The acknowledgment of these facts will give your argument more weight. There are exercises and pointers, which should not only keep the doctor away better than a daily apple or now "five a day", they will give you something to show and enough factual backing to not have to hear "Just stop wearing heels, that should solve your problems" from a rushed NHS doctor and derogatory friends when heels aren't even the issue. You will be able to show such knowledge of the risks involved and your active prevention and strengthening of the health of your legs and feet that they won't be in the position to argue.
Choose your path
Strangers, unfortunately, are harder to argue with, and not worth the effort most of the time. However, even this situation can be prevented. Choose a route and a time to travel that has a fair amount of heel wearing people, such as during rush hour when women are on their way to work. There are too many to pick you out from in the crowd and you are generally left alone. On the other spectrum, if I do have to travel at a time outside rush hour, I always choose the path that is least crowded and will make sure to avoid walking past a building site. Unfortunately, despite being in the 21st century, I have yet to walk past a building site where whistles are regarded inappropriate, a very sad truth.
Use shoes that fit the shape of your feet
This might sound obvious, but it's not. Yes, quality makes a difference, and considering it's something that carries the rest of your body and is the main, often ignored, touching point with our surrounding (sometimes shared with our bum), it is always worth the investment. However, don't be misled by famous brands or labels. For instance, I have quite petite feet and as much as I love Manolo Blahniks and some Primark shoes, they simply tend to be too wide or to flat around the mid-sole for my comfort. Instead, most my pairs are from Prada, Gucci, Jimmy Choo, and Zara (some Calvin Klein, Louboutin and Chloe). Yes, Zara. They fit my feet happily and perfectly in all corners and are comfortable walking shoes, no matter how high. This is, of course, also determined by the type of shoes, not just the make. Some feet structures prefer gladiators, some strappy heels. A pair of high heel shoes either fits or doesn't.
Get insoles
To make a pair of shoes fit uniquely to the sole of your feet, get insoles. If your feet like slingbacks or strappy heels (lucky you!), just a get a couple of small front feet silicone insoles. Whole feet insoles are better, but only work if your shoes are fully closed like boots or court shoes. This will shape to your feet after a few hours' wear and adds a softer layer between you and the ground.
Carry bags in your hand
It is obvious to say that you shouldn't carry much weight as this increases the unnatural load and the pressure on the ball of your feet. However, if you carry a bag in your hand hanging down, it balances the weight of your body automatically and the carrying is left for your arms to do rather than your feet. Carrying bags on your shoulder or on your arm is what shifts the load on top of the feet. On a seperate note, carrying a bag with glaves on has the same effect silicon insoles have on your feet - it substantially eases any pain that might arise.
Do your fair share of feet and leg bodybuilding
Although bodybuilding is "ugly looking" according to Joe Gold, the godfather of bodybuilding, we won't have to worry - we'll focus on legs just enough to promote circulation and help our legs stay flexible, building strength and resilience. To strengthen the lower leg muscles and improve balance, stand on your left leg and raise your right knee until your thigh is parallel to the floor. Keep your arms at your side and tighten your abdominal muscles. Hold for 30 seconds. If you feel like you are unstable, you can balance yourself on a chair. It is best to do about 5 repetitions on each leg. (Source for work out ideas mentioned)
Stretch the Achilles tendon and calf muscle
Our Achilles tendon is named after Iliad's favourite hero, but despite its cultural stance as representing weakness, it doesn't have to in our case. In order to stretch the Achilles tendon and the calf muscle, stand on the ball of your feet at the edge of a step and hold on to a banister for support and balance. Lower your heels slowly as far as your comfortably can. You should feel a stretch that runs from the calf down to your heel. Raise your heel then lower again, this time with your knees slightly bent. You should hold this for about 30 seconds. (Source for work out ideas mentioned)
Massage your feet
Speaks for itself, and can be done discretely whilst sitting on a bus, train, restaurant or working desk (etc). I tend to do so by placing one of my legs across the other in a way that it seems to form a square/ triangle. This helps stretch the calf , hips and ankles. Here's a colorful diagram of the nerve ends of our feet, but I usually just go for the parts that feel good when massaged. Quite simple, really. Do this regularly, if you can, best case scenario is every three hours.
That's it! Just these small actions (I don't have time for full blown excercises) should not only make you a better high heel wearer and increase your health, it will keep annoying doubters at bay and place you in a position of intellectual superiority as well as personal, visual and visible advantage.
