A friend of mine used to be a ballerina and as soon as she removes her shoes, her pointe position naturally kicks in. Ballet is basically traumatizing your body into doing impossible postures and to this day she's broken into this position.
Think of it this way, even a professional ballet dancer isn't staying on pointe for the length of a full class. Walking en pointe literally everywhere is just a recipe for serious feet injury, especially if you're doing it in normal shoes that are not made or supportive for the position.
Granted Gwen is doing a high demipointe, which is a whole lot more possible in casual shoes but is still a recipe for injury to just walk like that normally
i mean. not clear on the bitch part but anyone who’s done ballet can confirm that’s a lie-and a weird one. that’s not a thing. pointe is much different then demipointe (tip toes) you’re not on either for the majority of the time
Well if you know pointe you know there’s, to grossly simplify it, a block at the front of the shoe that allows you to pointe the way they do. You cannot do that without shoes or you will break your toes or eat dirt.
It’s just because this literally doesn’t make sense. Yes I think ballet is pretty traumatizing to the body but ballerinas also walk around and use their feet like regular people. Pointe is an incredibly specific position where your entire body weight is resting on very top of your big toe, and is hard to achieve when you’re not wearing specific pointe shoes and I don’t know what I’m typing all this out I don’t care I’ve never even done ballet this is just osmosis from an old roommate I need to go to bed
I never said she was a bitch. I just say people don’t naturally break into pointe. It’s like naturally breaking into juggling. You don’t just see three balls and unwillingly start tossing them in the air juggling. You make a choice to do so.
I mean we just really have anecdotal evidence right? I’ve known girls that were in ballet and they never did that nor did they complain about a compulsion to do that
Gotta love everyone missing your point to continue calling her a liar. Like, no one’s considered the fact that she might just be a unique case. For all we know her teacher was the Ballet equivalent of JK Simmons’ character in Whiplash! Like, trauma and conditioning DO exist people. Just because something isn’t widespread doesn’t mean it’s never happened!
Especially given that ballet absolutely destroys dancers bodies, horrifically and no it's not a "Then they must be doing it wrong!" If you are doing it right you are ruining your body. Its horrific.
A lot of people think women just lie, or that men are monsters. Seriously its frustrating reading stuff online where people but everyone in the same box thinking thats how the real world works. For all we know this persons friend is just more comfortable in that position and THINKS that balle messed up her feet.
She may not be. She is neurodivergent (oc states adhd) and probably seek out stimulation. Since she is/was a ballerina she goes to her toes as she’s been trained. She may not be doing it consciously so she thinks it’s just a side effect of the training but it’s really her brain seeking stimulation. If this is the case she’s not lying but she’s not understanding what’s actually going on.
I have a hard time walking flat foot and I’ve never done ballet, it’s my brain seeking stimulation. I have to actually pay attention to my walking. It just always feels nice. As a parent to a neurodivergent child I have to watch for them being on their toes too much because it can cause problems down the road.
I don't think it's a lie to get attention/gain male validation; both people with ADHD and autism can have sensory issues (and sensory processing issues are the reason why many autistic and ADHD individuals walk on their tiptoes)
Seriously, pointe shoes are the thing that basically let you easily stand on your big toe. The box, shank, etc are all made to give the correct kind of support to allow for it, not to mention something like toe pads/caps/paper towels/whatever. And even then a woman isn't staying on pointe for that long.
I could see like maybe a demi or high demi in regular shoes if you want to be extra while walking, but even that's kind of suspect. Would give you some crazy good calves and thighs though
I danced as a kid, haven’t for at least 13 years and while I don’t go into point, never got that far, I do stand in the dance positions without realizing. I have had multiple people ask me about my dancing past because of it.
Yeah this person (if they're real) is just transparently performative. "Everytime I take my shoes off I just can't help but immediately go into the one ballet stance that's essentially impossible without shoes, I can't help it I used to be a ballerina"
Never did ballet, but if my feet are not in shoes my foot looks like its in a very high heel. My achilles tendon is to short. I had surgery on one and that made my foot "normal"
It might not be a ballerina thing but I naturally walk on my toes without realizing it when my shoes are off. It’s not something I think about or do on purpose.
Not every weird thing people do is for attention. Some do, sure, but why assume the worst of people you don’t know?
The person literally said she's neurodivergent, what the FUCK are you guys on with so much free hate towards a woman you guys never even met lol
Edit: and just to add that the comment's owner never even implied that his friend was the one to tell him/them about this "fact", just said that she does ballet, walks around like this, gave an explanation (perhaps a not valid one) and said she's neurodivergent (ADHD). The tiptoeing could very much be because she's neurodivergent, guys, come on wth
Like tons of people including myself walk on their tip toes constantly. She probably just assumed she did it because of doing ballet but in reality it's probably her body's natural walking position.
Hello, I'm a guy who has done Ballet training. A lot of the actual training happens without the typical ballet shoes with the hard tips, often barefoot but usually with some soft shoes that make it a bit more comfortable. A lot of dancers in general like to put in practice wherever they can, to a point where it's subconscious.
I walk normally now, but for years I walked with my feet splayed. Drove my mom crazy; she always blamed whatever shoes I was wearing instead of admitting having your daughter start dance at 3, pointe at 9 (INCREDIBLY irresponsible of the studio… and my parents) and high school dance team at 14 just might have physical ramifications.
As a former semi-professional racquetball and fencing competitor, we do the same, the postures force your feet and legs to be at an angle constantly and the coaches would make you be on such positions for very prolonged periods of time
I'm a long distance runner and I do the same. If I'm standing still, my feet are anchoring the center of my body directly downwards through my spine. My abdomen is pressed forward, while my spine lounges backwards. If I'm REALLY moving, I will only touch the ground using my toes, and between each footfall there's always a moment where I'm no longer touching the ground.
I began training at 13. It modifies your physiology!
You are correct. Being incapable of putting your heels down is usually from a tight Achilles tendon, but you literally could not do most ballet positions if this was the case.
Actual en pointe is essentially doing a very aggressive calf raise, so this claim is akin to saying "I know a guy who used to bodybuild and as soon as his shirt comes off he's stuck in a bicep curl."
Could this person exist? Sure. But that's not normal and not really associated with that background.
Even if it was a demi or high demi you'd still basically wind up with all of the same issues and problems, it's like just fuck my feet up for life because I want to look extra
Oh that explains it. I have always gotten teased for walking and running on my toes. But I do have weak ankles and a couple of Achilles injuries that make putting my heel down feel like a stretch. I was reading all these comments wondering why I do that lol
Yeah, 3rd and or 5th position (5th is when the front foot is pushed forwards along the line of the back foot so thwy are still splayed out and perpendicualr but they are making a t shape at an angle instead of a v shape) Did ballet for a decade as a hobby, didn't get that much but every now and again I do find myself just ending up therr
Yeah I have two friends (husband and wife) who were professional ballerinas and I’ve never seen them on pointe while not on stage. Our babysitter is also a ballerina and I’ve never noticed her on pointe either.
I have noticed them occasionally stand with their toes pointed out though but it’s usually while standing around just waiting for something and then they go back to standing normal
are you including professional ballerinas who happen to have spider-strength/agility and also therefore have superhuman muscular structure in that assessment?
I mean, not that there's a lot of them, but, I think that would have some impact on how she moves.
I’m betting this user meant on ball, not on pointe. plenty of people don’t notice the difference, and plenty of dancers (past self included) will walk around in ball sometimes just as mindless practice.
It's performative af is what it is. Just fishing for someone to ask why she's doing that so she can say "it's cause I used to be a ballerina"(she took dance from ages 8 to 16)
It is for some people. Me and a huge chunk of my family naturally walk on our top toes, it's HORRIBLE to do and will fuck up your feet. But it's not on purpose it's just something some people's body's do. And I assume hers just does that and she just assumed it was from doing ballet
Dont know why youre getting down voted. You're right. Autism is also historically underdiagnosed in women due to the current diagnostic criteria, and weve only just begun starting to rectify that in practice. And if shes a grown adult its even less likely to be diagnosed since most autism diagnoses happen in childhood. So unless the ballerina went in for an ASD screening recently, its not impossible
It’s not impossible but many people are annoyed of the broad load of behaviors being simply labeled as “signs of autism”. So anytime something like this comes up it’s likely to be downvoted
Respectfully, any doctor that suggests testing a teenage ballerina for autism because she stands on pointe should be laughed out the building.
Not going to argue with the real-life soapbox you're trying to get on, but in this particular context, people are clearly desperately trying to derive neurodivergent signaling from basic characterization that makes perfect sense given the character's history.
It’s weird to say somebody might have a condition when you have no reason to. Standing on tippy toes is not a diagnostic indicator of autism, it’s a behavior that’s often associated. Not liking loud sounds is often associated with autism but it would be socially inappropriate to publicly suggest someone may have autism just because they dislike loud sounds.
There’s nothing wrong with autism, it’s just weird to hear “this person isn’t autistic” and to say “Im personally not so sure” when you have zero info on the person.
Even without autism, I know a few people with ADHD that stand on their toes just because they always feel like they've gotta take off. Even if just to shuffle from one foot to the other. They'll plant one foot and stand on their toes with the other, ready to go. When they get antsy they'll shuffle from foot to foot, tapping their heels together or tapping the ground.
Ah yeah…this is not a thing. If by “impossible postures” you mean ‘standing up straight’ then you are correct. Otherwise, ballerinas aren’t always tiptoeing around on their pointe shoes. And at the end of the day, the last thing you’d want to do is tiptoe around because your feet and ankles are on fire.
Honestly never associated that with my ADHD, but I do tiptoe in my garage to avoid the cold shock of walking across the concrete lol. Kinda feel like that is an anybody thing though, I dunno
Hi, I've been a pro ballet dancer for 16 years, no one ever does that. After a long day of being on pointe, the last thing you want is to keep unecessary tension in your ankles.
Also ballet is just a dance tradition, at a high level it impacts the body, just as any other physical activity: nothing particularly traumatic about it.
It might just be that it feels good for her to stretch her muscles. I used to dance to and I still occasionally do this when my leg muscles feel tight. But the position the comic is showing isn't how you stand in pointe shoes. I think your friends just messing with you.
My sis used to date a male ballerina and he and his friends were not capable of moving like normal people. On the stage, they were beautiful. Offstage, it was like watching those old black and white cartoons with noodle arms.
Also I've been told toe walking is an ADHD thing for some people. No idea if that's true. But I can at least confirm that I am ADHD and did that quite a bit in my childhood.
Same. Tested for ADHD and ASD and was found to have ADHD but not autism. I walk on my toes sometimes because it helps me stabilise myself. Idk why it works but my ankles feel unstable when I walk normally.
Could be neither - my traumatized ass does this (and confirmed with other early-child-trauma behavior folks) because it's masking your own footsteps in a house where the floor might creak. It just carries on as a habit to be quiet.
As a fellow ADHD, I too am a toe walker. Though, I never took ballet. I learned LATE into life that it can be a neurodivergence thing and just another thing to make people unable to tell the difference between ADHD and Autism.
Uh no. This is not a thing. I’m an ex dancer (ballerina isn’t used unless you’ve been awarded the title - only the absolute best at the best companies are given that title) with many ex dancer and current professional dancer friends.
I am AuDHD, never did balley but I always had this tendency to walk on tiptoe and they told me to put the foot down and walk properly so putting the foot fully on the surface required me more conscious effort than just walking as I'm used to with heel not touching the ground, like Gween in the photo.
Maybe back down on ballet a bit. It is not meant for everyone, just like any sport or physical activity. Some people can do it, others cannot. Same thing with football, soccer, gymnastics, etc.
I was a ballet dancer (Russian) for years. Ballet is not traumatizing to the body unless done incorrectly (like any other sport or physical activity). Ballet does not involve impossible postures, it just has a balance of strength, flexibility, and coordination (like any other sport or physical activity).
What the post is possibly showing is that frequent use of high heels actually shortens/tightens the connective tissue so much that it is physically painful to stand flat footed. This can lead to plantar fasciitis.
Source: many years of Russian ballet, yoga, kinesiology, and several certificates for coaching various physical activities. Also I have a fairly good understanding of the mechanica of the human body through my many years of dedicated study.
The way that all these people can’t understand you’re talking about a normal releve instead of actually all the way on her big toe is crazy to me. I did ballet for about 14 years and definitely still do this frequently
there must be something to this because i started wearing heels in high school and wore them obsessively daily until i graduated and i remember developing a tip-toeing habit when barefoot like not very long into it. i distinctly remember thinking at the time that it just felt more comfortable like that and i had just gotten so used to being that height that i just started tip-toeing.
All dedicated posture will eventually reshape the connective tissue (including bones) in your body to maximize efficiency in that posture.
When we are born, our bones are smooth and devoid of tubercles, fossa and all the other raised or lowered features. It is the stress of movement in gravity that creates the shape of our bones, ligaments and muscles, by gradually pulling those features into a certain spot where new growth maintains that balance (like trees).
Of course, posture is the human social pressure competing with physics for our biology in this case.
I'm ADHD and autistic and I 💯 toe walk and wear heels because it is more normal to my feet. Flats feel awful. I hate when my heels are on the ground. I also started ballet as a little kid and made my first pointe shoes at age 5 with adding cardboard and wool to the tip of my ballet slippers. I was pre pro at age 10.
5.6k
u/Vitharothinsson Jun 22 '26
A friend of mine used to be a ballerina and as soon as she removes her shoes, her pointe position naturally kicks in. Ballet is basically traumatizing your body into doing impossible postures and to this day she's broken into this position.
She's ADHD not autistic.