Is There Any Benefit to Doing Squats in High Heels?

If you’re wondering whether or not squatting in your stilettos might help you develop an ass that won’t quit, you might be disappointed. 

At SpotMeGirl we’re big fans of throwing on a pair of Chuck’s, getting under a heavy bar and squatting like there’s no tomorrow.

But away from the gym we like to live the lean life by putting on a sexy dress, sliding on our favorite high heels and letting our hair down.

Life is all about balance right?

We’ve seen the latest trend of squatting in high heels begin to take off. And to be honest, it’s pretty concerning.

If you want to know why you should ditch the stiletto squat and use alternative leg building exercises, read on and find out more…

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Where’s the high heel squat craze even come from?

The growth of the internet has been phenomenal.

From socializing with friends online line or internet shopping, to instant access to unlimited information (the best being this page obviously), it really has changed the way we perceive the world.

Unfortunately it’s also given a voice to idiots.

Whether it’s the dab dance, words such as lol, rofl and lmfao (best one ever by the way), or the hundreds of crazy glute exercises that pop up on a daily basis, we have the internet to blame for a lot of crazy ideas.

And there’s no more crazy than the stiletto squat.

What is a high heel squat?

It’s as simple as it sounds really. Performing your squat workout wearing stilettos has become increasingly popular in the US as a way of supposedly tightening up your butt and legs – simply because of the way in which the height of your heels changes muscle activation.

Those that advocate squatting in stilettos tell you that the bigger the heel, the more benefit you’ll get.

And this has led to numerous women strutting up to the squat racks like a model hitting the runway in an attempt to build a booty like Sommer Ray and thighs like Michelle Lewin.

It’s even led to some gyms scrapping the more traditional legs, bums and tums classes, and opting for the more uber-cool ‘Stiletto Strength’ workouts.

And as you can guess, this has led to celebrity after celebrity coming out of the wood work to endorse it out of the goodness of their own hearts (and not the $ of course).

High heels actually do make you more attractive

Men are simple creatures. Give them a good ass and a great set of legs to look at and they’re putty in your hands.

Research from journals such as the Archives of Sexual Behavior (which is as hilarious, as it is empowering to read by the way) shows that when women wear heels, men find them more attractive.

But that doesn’t mean you should work out in them.

Are squats in high heels safe?

The fitness industry has seen some pretty dumb things in its time.

From tummy toning belts to shrink wrap fat loss gimmicks, we’ve suffered hundreds of false hope fads aimed at women who’re clinging to the hope that whatever new device is hot this month will solve their problems.

Bottom line is that as sexy as we look and feel in our favorite pair of stilettos, they’re likely to do us damage in the long-term:

• Excessive pressure on your lumbar discs
• Reduces balance and increases risk of falls, ligament damage and fractures
• General joint pain
• Bunions, ingrown toenails and skin issues
• Shortened Achilles tendon and calf muscles

Here’s why you should avoid high heel squats

Elevating your feet doesn’t tone your butt

High heel squats are sold as a cure for your booty. But raising your heels increases how much your thighs work, not your glutes.

Now here’s the thing:

Women already have overly-developed thighs.

And weak ‘posterior chain’ muscles.

Because of our unique biomechanics, women tend to have strong quadriceps muscles and weak hamstrings and glutes. This is one of the reasons why we get knee, hip and lower back pain more often than men.

Any good strength coach knows that women need to train hamstrings and glutes much, much more frequently than their front thighs.

So while these celebrities and so called expert coaches think you’ll develop a strong booty from stiletto squats, you really won’t .

And will probably just make your thighs bigger too.

Heels give you sore feet just from walking. Imagine what squatting in them feels like!

You know the drill. It’s been a late night on the dance floor and as you crawl into bed you just know what’s waiting for you the following morning… sore feet.

Your heels will be in pain, your ankles will be swollen and your joints just won’t feel healthy. Even your big toes feel like they’ve been jammed through a mincer.

Doctors and podiatrists have been screaming about the damage that high heels can do to your feet for years. And that’s just from walking in them. What do you think these professionals will say about squatting in them?

Okay, some pretty personal trainer might tell you it’s cool to squat in heels. But let’s listen to actual experts too.

It’s dangerous as hell to squat in stilettos

It’s hard enough squatting in a pair of Chuck’s or weightlifting shoes, let alone high heels. Think about it – all of your body weight and all of the bar weight are amplified right through that small, heeled surface area.

It’s not going to take much for you to lose your balance or the heel to straight blow up under the weight.

And you’ll not be looking your best with a bruised head, smashed teeth or your leg in a cast from an accident like that.

When it comes to sensible, progressive exercises to build you legs and tone your butt, there are far better (and safer) training methods out there.

We’ve been here before unfortunately

A few years ago it was all the rage to wear sneakers that had a ‘unique sole designed to increase muscle activation’.

They were basically shoes with a high bow-wedge in the middle of the shoe. It made walking harder. And as such, allowed the companies selling them to make huge claims about helping to tone lower body muscles, improve posture, blah, blah.

It was all rubbish.

Once the science caught up with them and essentially ruined their lies and business model, they quickly become shoes for ‘improving your balance’ and not strengthening your ass and legs.

Because they just don’t work.

And once that science proves you wrong, you can’t legally make false claims.

High heel squats follow in the footsteps (pun intended) of these ridiculous claims. There’s just no evidence at all that they’ll improve your leg strength, or offer any benefits whatsoever.

A science-backed metabolism booster, however, may help you cut those stubborn wobbly bits…

Summary – Don’t waste your time with the stiletto squat

Squatting in high heels is the latest in a long line of crazy ideas, concocted by so called expert trainers who’s knowledge base can be scribbled down on the back of a free pass for your local gym.

Stiletto squats are unsafe and will more than likely lead to long-term joint issues. It doesn’t target your glutes and will just focus more attention on your quads.

Even then, the load will have to be so light that you might as well just ditch the heels, stick on some flats and train like a real woman should.

Never look for a shortcut. train hard, train clever. Everything else will come in time.