Crossing Legs

[Michelle Crossfire]

I have noticed, quite painfully, actually, that i am not able to cross my legs like a lady. I don't know if it is my muscles or what, but i simply can't do it. Anyone else have this problem?

[ArleneRaquel]

Crossing legs like a lady does can cause a little discomfort, but I manage and I love sitting lady style.

[Megan Briana]

I havent had any problems except the occasional pinch. I have been doing so often that my young children have said something. So have some of my family members. I don't really do or say anything when its mentioned. I just shrug my shoulders and keep sitting that way.

If you are new to leg crossing, it may BE the muscles stretching and adjusting to the new position.

[Cynthia Anne]

Yeah it can be painful! If you can't get the junk out of the way then Tuck it!

[Meghan]

I have always crossed my legs when I sit, even when I was made fun of by other girls in the 5th and 6th grades...

But the leg cross itself is easier for the genetic girls, the shape of their pelvis relative to a male makes it much easier for them to cross their legs and hold them together.

Meghan

[MaryAnn40c]

Leg crossing is all about being flexable....if your not somewhat flexable then you will have problems.

[sweetgal]

I find it hard to do. So much of me gets in the way and makes it uncomfortable.

[Diane Smith]

You'll probably have to work up to it slowly with stretching and flexibility exercises, which are probably good for you regardless of gender presentation. A beginner's dance class might be a good place to start. I've always been able to do basic crossed legs at the knee, but I found my options increased greatly (to include the "double cross" at both knee and ankle) after I lost 40 pounds or so a few years ago.

Women have an easier time with this because their pelvis is wider, which puts less strain on the hips when crossing the legs. But being able to do it is a clear feminine "tell" that may contribute to passability, so it's a skill probably worth developing.

Exercise and weight loss sounds like a good general prescription for a lot of us!

- Diane

[erickka]

I guess I'm one of the fortunate ones. I can cross my legs as well as if not better than some GG's. Then again, my legs are not overly muscular in the thigh area, and at 50+ i still have adequate flexiblity, despite old Arthur creeping up on me! LOL

[Georgia Rose]

Never had a problem with crossing my legs. But then I have long fairly skinny legs. I find it interesting that these days it is considered a female thing however I notice a lot of men especially over the age of about 40 cross their legs when they sit. I was certainly doing so long before I got into CDing.

[Karren H]

Its all in the math... parallel lines don't cross... womens legs are pinned further apart due to the birth canal so they can cross at the knees..... mens are closer together so they are almost parallel ...... depending on how close yours are.... it may be mathematicaly impossible.... personally I can cross mine without any problems

[Ariadne]

Times change. Once upon a time, not so long ago, it was not proper to cross one's legs above the knees. One crossed his or her legs below the knees.

[Kate Simmons]

It just takes practice and getting used to my friend. Seems to be somewhat of a lost art these days.:)

[Sarasometimes]

Anatomy is a part of the challenge and practice, flexibility and weight control help enable us to do it similarly to GG's. When dressed a tight tuck is essential for me as well. An interesting thing that feminine deportment experts often say is that knees not crossed is most feminine. What do you think? Also i do find that if I don't switch legs, the upper one gets a bit tingly.

[Cheryl T]

I used to be able to but now with a hip problem it's not possible anymore. Now I just cross my ankles when I sit.

[Lady Slipper]

Hmmm, no problem for me, I can cross my legs at the knee quite comfortably, usually without pinching. Sometimes I catch myself doing it and quickly adjust to a more manly position. :battingeyelashes:

[Sarasometimes]

I just remembered that a couple of weeks back I was at a very busy salon getting my hair done and I noticed a 30 something women sitting without her legs crossed when every other GG sat crossed-legged. The thing that most caught my attention was that she sat with her knees together but her lower leg was at a slight angle to one side ( similarly to the woman on the right in pic ). I instantly thought how feminine that pose was compared to the crossed leg look. Just an observation. Most feminine poses are somewhat asymetrical and that is what she was doing so elegantly! Her hair loked awesome too!

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=seated+feminine+poses&hl=en&biw=1680&bih=882&tbm=isch&tbnid=svIhwyBq485RlM:&imgrefurl=http://www.sfgate.com/living/article/THE-ART-OF-TRANSFORMATION-Denae-Doyle-guides-2587778.php&docid=9C_m7KGY17ll4M&imgurl=http://ww4.hdnux.com/photos/12/22/65/2698611/8/628x471.jpg&w=579&h=471&ei=8y18UMOQGeS60AH-34H4Bw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=344&vpy=156&dur=9985&hovh=202&hovw=249&tx=175&ty=114&sig=116650147875074076702&page=1&tbnh=160&tbnw=197&start=0&ndsp=32&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0,i:73

[Beverley Sims]

I cross my legs and even tuck my toes behind the other leg.
Comments from men. "That's so gay."
From women, "Gee you have lovely legs and look so elegant, I wish I could tuck my toes like that."
Of course this is in drab.
In a skirt, I have almost been busted for sitting with my legs apart when being tired and frustrated after a long day out. :)

[Lorna]

I find this topic (which has aired several times) very strange. I have never regarded, nor come across anyone else who has regarded, crossing legs as a gender-related phenomenon. When I look at groups of seated people, the proportions of men and women with crossed legs is usually very similar. I was at a gathering consisting of around fifty males and just a few women a couple of days ago and almost everyone crossed their legs at some point during the evening. Neither do I subscribe to the idea that women are more easily able to cross their legs. Apart from people with physical disabilities and some very obese individuals, crossing the legs - and even "double crossing" them is easy and normal.

[JenniferR771]

My wife gets angry if I cross my legs. She thinks it is feminine. She dislikes my cding. But I watched the news on TV and showed her how Matt Lauer crossed his legs at times.

[cyndigurl45]

Hips and muscles make it difficult even for GG's the GG's I workout with keep there knees together and cross there ankles tucking there legs under there chair. ;-)

[Stephanie47]

I can cross my legs at the knee just fine. I think the main problem for a man or a woman for crossing legs at the knee is weight in the thighs. If your thighs are too large it is not possible. There are other feminine poses. Just 'Google' the issue. In a men's group I attend, nobody crosses their legs at the knees. They cross at the ankles. They sit with legs splayed apart. If you cannot cross at the knees, use one of the other poses, such as shown in Sarasometimes link.

And, remember there are many other feminine vs masculine issues related to legs. As far back as Huck Finn in Tom Sawyer the differences have been used. Remember Huck Finn, when an object was tossed to him, he instinctively closed his legs together to make sure he could catch it before falling to the floor. He was found out, because, a girl of that time would have opened her legs to use the large skirt of the dress to catch the object.

Brush up on the arts by watching the YouTube videos. :)

[daviolin]

Practice makes perfect. I could never cross my legs like a woman all my life. I just worked at it over a long period of time. and wala I can be taught. I hurts for awhile, but its easy now. One word of advice. Don't do it to much, for it causes vericous veins in your legs. I read that somewere. Daviolin

[Debra Russell]

Have always crossed my legs - from a early age never any discomfort, natural for me and never thought it was out of the ordinary but I guess that's not the norm.............................Debra

[Tracii G]

Losing weight helped me be able to cross at the knees with ease.
I can double cross depending on what I am wearing.

[Sarasometimes]

Speaking about other mannerisms. In high school (long before I thought I was a CD) a teacher mentioned that there were differences but he presented it in an embarrassing way for me. He started with me and asked me to look at my fingernails. I spread my fingers and looked at them open palmed. He brazenly announced, "That is how women look at their nails!" I was prtified! He then asked the other the same question and of course all the other boys did it with a fist. I hated that teacher so much! High School is tough enough without the teacher setting you up like that!! Still scarred and looking at my nails like a girl to this day, just not when anyone else is watching!!

[Acastina]

Practice makes perfect. I could never cross my legs like a woman all my life. I just worked at it over a long period of time. and wala I can be taught. I hurts for awhile, but its easy now. One word of advice. Don't do it to much, for it causes vericous veins in your legs. I read that somewere. Daviolin

Actually, varicose veins are generally hereditary or related to being seriously overweight, diabetic, or pregnant. But you're right about moderation; change positions often. I have to confess that I don't understand how some here can't cross their legs (my guess would be legs that are too thick), or why others see it as an inappropriately femmy thing. Ever watched the men in suits on talk tv shows? I find the typical male habit of splaying the knees outward (or parking one ankle atop the other knee) to be more or less repulsive and an expression of an unconscious desire to occupy and dominate physical space.

The classic feminine position is actually with the ankles crossed to one side.

[Lady Catherine]

I remember watching "A League of Their Own" In the scene when they are at the etiquet school, the woman instructing them has them cross their ancles and put their knees together. This is what I've tried to emulate.

[Kerstin]

I can cross my right leg over my left with no problems, in fact it's my natural sitting position. But oddly enough I can't cross my left leg over my right without major discomfort.

[Janelle_C]

I used to never be able to cross my legs like a lady and it wasn't my muscles, it was my thighs where too big. Now that I've lost weight and go to the gym my legs cross nicely. But that's just me.

[Pexetta]

I can cross my legs easily and always did so quite naturally, until my favourite woman colleague told me last year that sitting like that exascerbated back problems, so I stopped. And to give her credit, I've had a lot less trouble with my back since.

[Saffron]

I prefer to sit like this: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nCWKg1xp4Pk/TzIRQZxl_0I/AAAAAAAAAeA/h7d4bLoolOc/s1600/properly-sit-lady-200X200.jpg
http://static3.depositphotos.com/1000691/112/i/450/dep_1125103-Reading-young-woman.jpg

[Julie Denier]

Losing weight helped me be able to cross at the knees with ease.


Slimming down has helped me in this area as well.

[Angela Campbell]

When I was a teen I had to go to cotillion classes to learn how to be a "gentleman". In this class we were told that a man crosses his legs in the style we now think of as feminine. To do the other way was not polite and was not what a gentleman did. A lady was to cross her legs at the ankles only and bring them under her chair with the knees together. To do otherwise was not lady like. This was taught to us as the way a person of class would present themselves.

I remember when I was very young that many men crossed the legs the feminine way. It was accepted as normal.

I am glad I went to the classes now. They taught us ballroom dancing, how to use the proper forks and dishes, how to dress and how to appear as if you were learned in the social graces. I did pay attention to what he taught the young ladies while I was there too. In fact I wanted so bad to sit on their side of the classroom.

[Mona]

I've always been able to cross my legs but what I can't do is the parking one ankle atop the other knee like some men do as Acastina pointed out. If I try my upper leg just sticks up and won't go level.

[sometimes_miss]

I used to be able to cross my right knee over my left, but was never comfortable doing the opposite. After the knee injuries, I can't cross either knee over the other leg without tremendous pain. So I just sit with my knees together when I feel like being girly. It requires a conscious effort, though.

[keelly60]

You have to remember GG's learned to cross their legs from the time they was little girls?

[Sarasometimes]

I prefer to sit like this: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nCWKg1xp4Pk/TzIRQZxl_0I/AAAAAAAAAeA/h7d4bLoolOc/s1600/properly-sit-lady-200X200.jpg
http://static3.depositphotos.com/1000691/112/i/450/dep_1125103-Reading-young-woman.jpg

Saffron that second pic is exactly how the young lady in the salon was sitting and she looked so feminine! As other have said, guys can and do sit crosslegged but if you wish to sit in a most feminine way theknees togeether claves at an angle is it! Thanks for get picutres!

[Mythic]

I normally sit with my legs crossed half the time.

[Vickie_CDTV]

One important thing to remember is that not all GGs can cross their legs either. You just do what they do, cross at the ankles, or sit with your knees together when your legs are under a table.

[Nicola2876]

I've got to agree that being in shape helps with leg crossing. I've just lost 30lb and I'm now a uk size 14 And here I sit in a skirt and heels legs crossed. bliss!

[linda allen]

I used to be able to but now with a hip problem it's not possible anymore. Now I just cross my ankles when I sit.

That works and your pose in your avitar is very feminine.

http://www.crossdressers.com/forums/image.php?u=23293&dateline=1344881538