How to Run in Heels

Christy Kim

On December 15, 2012, 21-year-old college junior and human rights advocate Jacob Tobia ran 1.1 miles across the Brooklyn Bridge while wearing a pair of five-inch heels—Jeffrey Campbells, to be exact. As part of the Run for Shelter charity race, Tobia raised over $10,000 for the Ali Forney Center, a shelter for LGBT youth in New York City that was devastated by Hurricane Sandy. He tells Glo what the opportunity meant to him and shares some valuable advice for running in even the fiercest of heels.

On his fabulosity: Most of the time, when men do charity runs in high heels, it's meant as a joke—you know, the idea is “Ha ha, isn't it ridiculous that a man is running in high heels?” That's not what Run for Shelter was about. It was to use my fabulosity for good—to be authentically myself in a way that gives back to the community. I want to serve as a role model for anyone who is gender non-conforming and doesn't live comfortably within traditional gender roles.