[One Day Ten Thousand Steps, One Day One Thousand Characters] Why Did a 20-Year Veteran Fashion Model Relearn 'Walking'?

Model and Musical Actor Lee Taekyung, Certified in Healthy Walking
"Walking straightens a hunched body, and healthy walking makes the body healthier"

Lee Taekyung (36), who debuted in high school and works as a model and musical actor, had a unique experience this year by properly learning ‘walking’ and even obtaining a certification. It may seem surprising that a veteran from ‘Model Line,’ once called the model academy, only now learned how to walk properly, but Lee explains that "‘walking’ and ‘walking on the runway’ are different."

"Female models constantly suffer from knee and back pain. They walk in high heels and stand for long periods. When wearing a designer’s clothes, they can’t even sit because the clothes would wrinkle. Having been on diets for a long time, I think my bones have become weak." (laughs)

The average heel height of high heels worn by female models is 9 cm. Since they need to be accustomed to walking in high heels, they often wear high-heeled shoes even offstage for practice. This is obviously not good for knee and back health. Lee also maintained a height of 175 cm and a weight of 49 kg, so dieting was a way of life.

Then, through a senior’s recommendation, Lee learned about healthy walking. Taking it further, this spring Lee took classes at the Korea Walking Association and even earned a certification (Level 2 Healthy Walking Instructor).

"I only realized recently that I had been walking incorrectly. Because I wore high heels for a long time, I put pressure on the front of my feet and walked with a ‘thump-thump-thump’ sound. Models who do runway walking tend to lean their bodies slightly backward. That’s also not good for long periods of walking. Studying healthy walking helped me develop a stable gait. I jog every early morning, and after learning proper walking, my running form has changed too."

Having modeled for a shoe shopping mall for seven years, intense exercise was not an option for Lee, so jogging was the best exercise. After learning how to walk properly, Lee realized there were also issues with the soles of the feet when running.

How are healthy walking and runway walking different? "The purpose of walking is different. Fashion models are ‘clothes hangers’ that make the clothes stand out. So they have to walk and stand in a way that makes the clothes shine. On the other hand, healthy walking is a time to find myself. It’s about forming lifestyle habits that create a ‘clothes hanger’ that lasts healthily and long. I think it would be good to include healthy walking in models’ runway training. It helps you stand straight and understand the principles of walking. Runway walking straightens a hunched body, and healthy walking makes the body healthier, so both should be done together."

In fact, Lee incorporates the advantages of both runway walking and healthy walking when teaching senior model classes. "Nowadays, many people in their 50s and 60s challenge themselves as senior models. But despite their enthusiasm, they have ingrained walking habits from a lifetime, making it hard to find rhythm. Teaching them step-by-step how to walk healthily with correct posture?straightening the knees, walking fast with wide strides, and keeping rhythm while doing runway walking?has proven effective."

Lee also emphasized the benefits of runway walking. Due to poor posture and long hours using computers and smartphones, adults tend to have hunched bodies, and young people have bent necks. Runway walking is unmatched in correcting these issues.

"When you first learn runway walking, you practice standing against a wall with the back of your head, back, and hips touching the wall. The beginning of runway walking is posture correction and body shape correction. If the ‘clothes hanger’ is deformed, no matter how good the clothes are, they won’t look right. When you do runway walking, your body and neck don’t lean forward, and you train to keep your knees together, which straightens your body. Depending on the person, you can even gain about 2 to 3 cm in height."

Lee debuted in 2003 with a CGV commercial and also works as a musical and theater actor. Recently, Lee has been busy rehearsing for the drama play ‘Anyone Dancing,’ which will be performed from November 21 to 23 as part of the ‘23rd World Two-Person Play Festival’ held at the Daehangno Art Space Hyehwa.