So here’s an issue that we ALL face when adding height. How high can I go when taking into account my current ‘real’ height. Elsewhere on here I have addressed the style considerations of ‘how high can I go?’ and dispel the myths about whether you might be rumbled if you go back with a girl. Here I am going to talk about the practical considerations of how high you can go, specially in regard to your present height and detection issues.

Firstly, a general point – a small amount of extra height is in essence undetectable even to very observant people, simply because everyone’s shoes and boots add height. And because women’s shoes in particular go up and down in height, making judgment on height by your girlfriend quite tricky outside of very broad bands. Certain sneakers and Timberlands and other workwear style boots will add anything up to just under 2″ or about 5cm (and a lot of boots give between one inch and 1.5″). No-one really comments when you just shove on a pair of Timberlands or Air Maxes and undoubtedly gain well well over an inch. They just don’t.

So going for elevators that give you the 6cm, or 7cm (a strong 2″+) makes your added height basically undetectable even to your mates and girlfriend, whatever your current height. You notice it for sure but no-one else ever will. And for some that is a comfortable start point, from which they never want to move up: I have mentioned elsewhere in my advice column how the vast majority of people are scientifically proven to be fairly unobservant. But yes I realize that when you are adding height you want that to be a fairly cast iron 100% who will not be able to tell you are adding height… not just “the vast majority”. So there is a kinda bit more sophisticated formula I have come to appreciate what works.

So here are my tips about how many inches you can add pretty undetectably, taking into account your current height.
I am going to divide this into two lifestyles, the first of which is:

Conventional and wanting 100% certainty all the time: I am assuming for the purpose of this first lifestyle that you want to be able to walk around very easily, be able to take your footwear off in front of others, occasionally play sport and sometimes not wear footwear around the house, again in front of others. All without fear of any type of serious “Wow you just got taller/shorter” comments. It’s a kinda day-to-day practical lifestyle. The aim is to add height, do it ultra convincingly, not have to worry if you DO have to take your shoes or boots off.

For that purpose, imho you can easily go for boots that offer 6cm (2.4″) or 7cm (2.75″) if you are up to 5’11” (180cm). No-one, trust me, will notice. Not even your partner. This type of height addition I call turbo charged normal footwear, as it is totally normal just pushes the barriers right up to the limit of normal. When you take your shoes off it will be just really like taking normal shoes off to others. But you WILL be much taller. And you can decide later if you wanna go taller.

Now slightly unfairly, some might say, if you are in the 6′ (183cm) plus area, you can easily go for the 7cm or 8cm (2.75″ to 3.1″), and above 6’2″ (188cm) then the 4″ (10cm) boots as well. All very easily for walking around and appearing normal if you take them off. You may be surprised to learn that many many tall guys want to be taller: I have written over the past couple of years about this elsewhere and have recently had my 151st guy over 6′ (183cm) writing to me and asking for advice on how to get taller! Amazing eh? Competition with other guys, a hyper understanding of the advantages of height, all sorts of factors make it not just the desire of people under 6′ tall.

If you are 6’3″, you are already taller than 97% of other guys… add 3″ and people do not think twice at all. Trust me, I know from my own experience! I stress that you can go higher at any height that you might be but I am talking above about ultra ultra safe situations.

On therefore to the second lifestyle.

This is when you either don’t take your shoes off a lot in front of others, you kinda want your image to be tall and are prepared to go further. Here it’s a case of all bets are off and you want to get just as tall as possible but still be basically undetectable – only, you are prepared to push it out a little more. It may be that you want to do this all the time, or it may be that day-to-day you want to conform to the first lifestyle of ultra safe that I mention above, but that at night when you are out or in some situations you want to go a bit further and be the 2nd lifestyle! That works as well.

For this, more radical approach I suggest the following:

Up to 5’7″ real height and go for 7cm (2.75″) or 8cm (3.1″)
Up to 5’11” go for 8cm (3.1″) or 10cm (4″)
And over 5’11 go for 10cm (4″), or 11cm (4.3″) most times, and 12cm (5″) if you really really wanna push it out

These three bands are the kinda optimum for the following situations – so they remain much more undetectable than if you simply went for broke and wore 5″ elevators at 5’9″! They allow you to move around easily, to work, rest and play, to occasionally take your footwear off if you have to.

And as I have said you can mix it up – go higher in the evening s etc and more cautious during the day.

Now I want to illustrate this approach through one of the very few guys I have actually met who I know wears elevators (we met through one of the sites when he asked me for advice) and he does EXACTLY that – he is 5’9′ and day to day he wears 7cm (2.75″) elevators. He loves the ease of adding height at that level – no restrictions, he could take the shoes off if he wanted, he swims, hits the gym, and doesn’t feel self conscious about taking off and putting on. We have often talked about this and he is always amazed that his girlfriend and fellow workers and gym buddies have no idea at all – he takes these shoes off at home, does the usual, puts them on to go to work etc. But at night if they go out to a bar or whatever, he wears the higher 4″ Ischias that I myself have and he also has a pair of 5″ elevators for occasions he really wants to get tallest possible.

What he is doing is the ‘horses for courses’ thing – he absolutely and totally would NOT want to wear 5″ elevators all day every day – even though he would love the height. He knows that there might JUST be the greater chance he could be rumbled for whatever reason. It might never happen but it might. But at night when you are out, it’s way easier as you are not gonna be taking your boots off in public, well you can gain that bit extra.

It’s all about what you want to achieve. Even at his higher level he probably wouldn’t be detected, but he wants to feel totally comfortable in what he is doing 100% of the time – and mixing up his heights like that to suit the occasion really works for him.
So, at lower levels on my chart of heights, you are all totally safe but feel totally great and taller. And as time goes by you may feel you just wanna get an extra inch or so – or maybe even have something in your wardrobe that pushes you right up there to the max.