Want a Better Butt? Try These Shoes

by Anne Metz (Subscribe to Anne Metz's posts), Posted Aug 31st 2007 at 9:04AM

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You want a better butt, don't you? And if it doesn't involve squats, even better, right? Well, then, I've got good news.

The butt-lifting shoes I mentioned in the title of this post are made by a company called Earth. What makes Earth shoes different is exactly what makes Earth shoes a perfect partner for those of you interested in lifting the junk in your trunk. Namely, it's all about the negative heel technology.

Negative heel technology was first developed by a Scandinavian yoga teacher by the name of Anne Kalsø. Kalsø noticed on a beach visit that standing in sand felt an awful lot like the sensation of holding the standing mountain yoga pose. Her shoulders rolled back, her breath eased, and her feet relaxed as her spine aligned to its natural position in the compressed sand.

What Kalsø had stumbled on was something she dubbed the "negative heel," meaning that the ball of your foot is kept on a slightly highly plane than your ankle. Because of the slight incline of Earth's negative heel shoes, you exert more effort than you otherwise would as you walk around. Like a strolling on a treadmill with a 3.7° incline, Earth's negative heel rocking motion tones your legs, butt and even your heart. The negative heel can also improve breathing and relieve back pain since these are often symptoms of chronic bad posture.

Earth shoes might sound (and look) a little odd at first, especially since most shoe styles go to great lengths to keep your heel higher than the ball of your foot (i.e. every shoe on the market, but especially those stilettos). High heels look good, I admit, by they come at a high cost.

Doctors have been warning us for years that towering shoes are as bad for your posture as they are for your feet. Not looking like you have mile-long legs is a trade-off, but it's not bad as you might think since these flats burn extra calories from the effort required to walk in the negative heels. Thus, Earth shoes actually make your legs healthier and better looking -- instead of just giving the appearance that your legs look better. (Come on, the thing itself is way better than the illusion, no?)

I actually have a pair of Earth shoes that I've been wearing for a few months now, and while they aren't my *most* chic flats, they certainly are my most comfortable. I can actually attest to a difference in my hips and butt whenever I either wear the shoes for a few days, or don't wear the shoes for a few days. Naturally, things seem smaller and tighter after sustained use, and similiarly looser when I don't.

I can't speak for all the bod-toning shoes out there, but I can say that if you are able to find a pair of Earth shoes that fit your feet*, you're well on your way to the better butt. Of course, doing a few squats here and there won't hurt either, but short of that, try a pair of Earths.

*I highly recommend getting a fitting for Earth shoes. Not all styles are suited to all feet, so it's worth asking a knowledgeable salesperson for help.

Filed under: Accessories, Fashion
Tags: accessories, butt, Earth shoes, EarthShoes, exercise, fitness

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

babycakes 9-06-2007 @ 2:39PM

Are you kidding?? I had Earth Shoes 34 years ago !!!

Cheryl 9-06-2007 @ 2:40PM

I believe it is 1975 again!

pderoo1 9-06-2007 @ 3:02PM

Earth shoes?!? Nuthin' new about those! I had some back in the 70's! Loved 'em, too! =-)

Kay 9-06-2007 @ 2:51PM

Everything old is new again. I have and wear a pair of Earth shoes I bought...lemme think...in 1973 or 74. Changed the laces a couple of times, but the shoes themselves have held up for 34 years.

cody 9-06-2007 @ 3:03PM

oh no really?

Tammy Ashley 9-06-2007 @ 3:12PM

I had a pair of earth shoes also back in the 70's. They were some of the most comfortable shoes I owned. Odd looking and I remember they only came in this tan kinda color. They are the first thing I thought of when I saw these. Same shape and everything except that these are slip ons instead of ties. You know the saying what goes around comes around.

chayah 9-06-2007 @ 3:32PM

I just bought 4(that's four) pairs...i had a pair of hand-me-downs back in the days.... they feel a bit strange on your back and spine and your in-step a bit stressed, but after about 20min, you feel your back straightening and you walk changing a slight bit. Got em on EBAy!!! love em...looking for the boots now!!

davey 9-06-2007 @ 3:29PM

same old junk just a different angle.....ladies don't believe all you read a good butt is a combination of inherited charactersitics and a healthy active lifestyle...we should never allude ourselves into the kind of thinking this type of advertisment elicits.

lori 9-06-2007 @ 4:21PM

I also wore earth shoes in 1975, my boyfriend was shorter than I was and they were the lowest heels I could find. They were the most comfortable shoes I've ever worn.

Holly 9-06-2007 @ 4:21PM

What the 'style experts' are failing to add is that they caused health problems. Keeping your feet elevated in these shoes is akin to keeping them elevated in high heels. It will throw off spine alinement, cause hammer toe, and give you bunions. And that's oh SO stylish, isn't it?

Tamara 9-06-2007 @ 4:37PM

Coming Around!!!! Gee, maybe they'll bring back my "Roots" as well! I can't believe I wore these back in 1977!

GinC 9-06-2007 @ 4:41PM

I, too, remember Earth Shoes fondly--good to see all my fellow geezers checking in. These don't look all the different from some current shoes I have and for me, comfort is what it's all about.

fe walton 9-06-2007 @ 4:55PM

I have this shoes that I bought in one of the shops in Port Jefferson Station near Stonybrook Univ. Hosp. that is made in Israel. Since I bought it in 2005, I never took it off and I didn't buy any other shoe either. I am a nurse so i really need an excellent shoe for my tired feet. Since I bought that shoe, my feet never got tired. The shoe called "Naot". You heard about it? Doctors were crazy about them.

jan 9-06-2007 @ 5:15PM

I too wore earth shoes in the 70's and loved them. I was just laminting about them the other day that I wish I could find some. Just goes to show if you wait long enough everything that is old will be new again! Glad they are back!

adlie 9-06-2007 @ 5:22PM

it sucks word!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

linS 9-06-2007 @ 5:25PM

Yea......they're ugly.

Joanne 9-06-2007 @ 5:53PM

I get it...they take you back to the 70's in your mind, when we all had much better butts!!! Too bad they're still so darn ugly...and the shoes, too! haha, got cha'

nanceen 9-06-2007 @ 6:02PM

LOLOLOL. ooohhh its 1974 again. hmmm think I need to go heat up my curling iron and flip my bangs back and put on my BeeGee records.

Seriously though they were comfortable when I wore them in highschool and if they lift the hiney I have today, hey I am all for it!!!

lynn 9-06-2007 @ 6:04PM

I hope the 80s don't return like the 70s have

Erik cooper 9-07-2007 @ 4:25AM

anyone remember Birkenstocks? Same theory.

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