Are high-heeled shoes torture devices?

Who came up with high-heeled shoes? Was it a man or a woman? Was it an eastern or a western thing? Who designed these torture devices for our feet? How many women notice the difference when wearing high-heels verses flats?

The other day I decided to wear my black boots. These boots have a nice thick heel and are easier for me to wear then a pair with a skinny heel. I don't wear heels often for many reasons. Some of which came back to me just a few days ago.

Here was my day, in a nutshell, off to run some errands. We drove for an hour, parked for an hour (to met someone), drove for 30 minutes, ate dinner at BJ's and drove for an hour home. Now keep in mind, I wasn't the even the one driving. So this entire time I am just kicked back relaxing. Enjoying the day.

After being home for 15 minutes I walk upstairs to talk to my roommates. I stand at the top of the stairs for a few minutes talking. I turn around and start down the stairs. Of course I forgot that I haven't taken my boots off yet. It's usually the first thing I do after walking in the door. So I take 3 steps down and there goes my right knee. Ouch! I take 2 more steps down, favoring my right knee, and there goes my left knee. OUCH! So at this point I have to sit on the stairs just to take my boots off, in order to limp down the few remaining steps. I ponder, who made these torture devices?

I blame Catherine de'Medici, the Duchess of Orleans, for woman's plights in having to wear high-heels. In 1533, she commissioned a cobbler to make her a pair of heels, both for looks and to increase her height. High heels quickly caught on with the fashion conscious men and women of the French court, and spread to nobility in other countries. The term "well-heeled" became synonymous with great wealth.

Yet cowboy boots were around before The Duchess bought her first pair of heels. Cowboy boots or riding boots were designed with a heel to keep a riders foot from slipping forward in the stirrup. When that happened and it they got "hung-up" the rider is terribly hurt and sometimes dies. Riding boots appeared around 1500 but were made for safety.

Over it's first three decades the simple riding heel gave way to a more stylized one. Beginning with the French, men's heels became taller and thinner. Eventually they were no longer useful while riding, but were relegated to "court-only" wear. Men's heels reached as high as three to four inches by the late 1600s. In the late 1700's due to the term "well-heeled" as the French Revolution was close people stopped wearing heels.

Today, women typically wear high heels, with styles varying yearly. There are many different views on wearing high heels today. Are they good or bad for you? You decide! Here are some of the pro's and con's of wearing high heeled shoes. Just remember that heels were originally designed for riding not walking.

• they make your calves look tighter
• they change your posture and your walk changes to sexy!
• they make you appear taller
• they make your legs appear longer
• they make your feet look smaller
• they make your butt look tighter
• they might improve your sex life

• they can cause foot pain
• they can make your feet look ugly and deformed, including hammertoes and bunions
• they can cause you to walk unsteadily
• they will shorter your stride
• they can make running difficult
• they can cause degenerative changes in the knee joint
• they can shorten your Achilles tendon

So how did men get out of wearing high heels? How did us ladies get such a bad deal? Is it because we put up with it? Did you know that more woman like wearing heels then those that don't.

After my day of wearing heels, it brought to the forefront one of the main reason why I don't wear them very often, OUCH MY KNEES! Just read that list of health reason's to NOT wear heels. I fall in that category!

I mean come on people! How well would you function if you suddenly grew three inches over night, but all you got was leg? Want to talk about clumsy! So you wake up and boom, three inches of legs. When you take a step you expect a longer stride and almost fall on your face. You have 3 more inches yet a shorter stride! What? How does that work out? Don't fall as your trying to sit on the couch when you realize you can't walk. You just need to drop down a few extra inches before your butt hits that cushion. Opps, you plopped! It's not so easy is it!