What my killer heels taught me about walking outside my comfort zone

Last week, I attended my first formal meetings industry gala in a long while – MPI Potomac’s Evening of the Stars – which took place at the beautiful Warner Theater in Washington, DC.

The men looked dapper in suits and the women shone in cocktail dresses, gowns and …. high heels. From the way most of the women were attempting to walk in high heels – kind of like circus acrobats teetering on a tightrope – I felt seen!

I love shoes, but despite having a major shoe fetish and collection, I’ve pretty much been barefoot for much of the pandemic. I’ve been doing yoga barefoot and barely left my home except for my daily power pole walk in sneakers.

In a hilarious video skit during the MPI event, the two women MC's discussed transitioning from slippers to stilettos being no small feet… I mean, feat! I definitely needed Training Heels, along with training time – just like when you’re training for a marathon – to get in good foot shape for these kinds of events.

I dusted off my fancy black 4-inch-high-heeled sandals with bling crystals. I’m byte-sized – just 5 feet small – so I look for anything to give me height.

The shoes felt comfy while I was seated for the awards reception.

But…the rest of the evening was a standing reception. It had been so long since I’d worn heels and these sandals in particular that I didn’t realize the rubber tips from the bottom of the heels had come off. I spent the night clunking around, sounding like a tap dancer.

I’m an avid power and pole walker, but I could barely walk in those shoes! I felt like a little girl stumbling around in her mother’s shoes playing dress-up.

By the end of the evening, I was ready to walk barefoot to the parking lot to retrieve my car. And I could not wait to slip on a pair of flats to drive home in.

Here’s what I learned: Those glam sandals? They are SITTING SHOES!

The next day, I could barely move. I sat at my desk, trying to relieve my foot pain with a massage ball.

When your attendees or employees are sitting all day – either at a desk working, during a virtual conference or in a breakout room at a live event – I have the perfect chair exercise break, whether you’re in sneakers or stilettos!

Here’s a sneak peak of my 4-minute video Chair Abs break that is available for your hybrid or live meetings, or for your employee wellness program.

The video has an accompanying downloadable tip sheet that features images of and instructions for each exercise. It’s just one of more than 100 videos and downloadable resources inside my Virtual Wellness Lounge.

FYI: Whether your attendees are in comfy shoes or killer high heels, all content is byte-size guaranteed and designed to keep attendees ENGAGED & ENERGIZED at virtual, hybrid and live events. Click HERE to schedule a Zoom meeting to discuss the Lounge for your upcoming virtual or hybrid meeting (and click HERE for a video tour of the Virtual Wellness Lounge).

Be well,

PS: Here's a sneak peek of another downloadable resource: 5 SEATED YOGA POSES - paired like shoes - with a video inside the Virtual Wellness Lounge to help attendees SIT WITH ENERGY :) Let's jump on a Zoom call so I can show you my library packed with actionable downloadable resources to help attendees integrate wellness into their workdays once the conference ends!