Ladies, you really should strut your stuff if you want to get a date.
According to a new study, how a woman moves is at least as important as her body shape in terms of whether others find her attractive.
Women who take shorter steps and wiggle their hips are seen as more attractive, the research revealed.
Scientists aren’t exactly sure why this is, but they claim gait might be giving away important clues to a woman’s fitness, age and reproductive health.
Models like Kendall Jenner (pictured) make a living strutting up and down the catwalk. Scientists have found that wiggling hips and short steps can make a woman just as attractive as having small hips and a rounded bottom
Dr Ed Morrison, from the University of Portsmouth, said: ‘A combination of small waist, rounded hips and bottom, and a slim figure have long been reported to be important in women’s attractiveness, but it turns out the way a woman moves is as important.’
Marilyn Monroe, one of the most iconic women of all time, was famed for the wiggle in her walk.
Rumour has it that she had her cobbler shave half an inch off one of her heels, to help enhance the unique trait which became heavily imitated.
Much like Marilyn, Dr Morrison believes that movement in human mate choice cannot be ignored.
‘Most previous research into what makes a body attractive has relied on photographs, but in real life we usually see a potential mate moving. Motion is also crucial in courtship behaviours like dancing.
‘Research shows that we are more likely to find a woman attractive if she wiggles her hips and takes small steps.
‘Because body shape preferences vary across cultures and through history, the study aimed to find out if you take away the face, what sort of clues would people use to gauge attractiveness.
‘Motion capture allows us to isolate movement from body shape and compare the relative importance of the two.’
![](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/11/16/1999DDDB00000578-5829435-image-a-8_1528729701441.jpg)
Marilyn Monroe (pictured) is one of the most iconic women of all time and is famed for the wiggle in her walk. Rumour has it that she had her cobbler shave half an inch off one of her heels, to help enhance the unique trait which became heavily imitated
The study looked at 37 women walking on a treadmill in just leggings and a vest top.
Researchers placed reflective markers on different parts of their bodies to analyse their movement when they walked.
Markers were placed on their ankles, knees, hips, shoulders, elbows, wrists, in the middle of their forehead, on their clavicles and on their navel.
Using only these markers, a stick figure of each woman was created.
![Researchers placed reflective markers on different parts of the bodies of 37 women to analyse their movement when they walked. Markers were placed on their ankles, knees, hips, shoulders, elbows, wrists, in the middle of their forehead, on their clavicles and on their navel](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/11/11/4D21A6B400000578-0-image-a-27_1528711944511.jpg)
Researchers placed reflective markers on different parts of the bodies of 37 women to analyse their movement when they walked. Markers were placed on their ankles, knees, hips, shoulders, elbows, wrists, in the middle of their forehead, on their clavicles and on their navel
![The results revealed that women with a body mass index of 19-23 were seen as the most attractive, along with women with an hourglass shape. The way a woman walked was also vital to perceived attractiveness](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/11/16/0C36A23700000578-5829435-image-m-6_1528729351962.jpg)
The results revealed that women with a body mass index of 19-23 were seen as the most attractive, along with women with an hourglass shape. The way a woman walked was also vital to perceived attractiveness
This was then shown to 25 volunteers (14 women and 11 men) to rate on a scale of one (very unattractive) to seven (very attractive).
A further 50 volunteers were asked to rate the same women in photographs or in film footage.
The results revealed that women with a body mass index of 19-23 were seen as the most attractive, along with women with an hourglass shape.
‘The results suggested that movement is as important as static measurements in gauging attractiveness, which was surprising because everyday experience suggests you can see easily how attractive someone is from a photograph.
‘I’m not sure why a particular walking style is considered attractive but gait might be giving away important clues to a woman’s fitness and age – key components of reproductive health.’
![Superstars Kim Kardashian (left) and Kourtney Kardashian (right) have made an international brand out of their brand. Known for their lavish outfits and voluptuous figures, the art of the hip wiggle and strut is not lost on these women](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/11/16/03E94058000003E8-5829435-image-a-9_1528729718003.jpg)
Superstars Kim Kardashian (left) and Kourtney Kardashian (right) have made an international brand out of their brand. Known for their lavish outfits and voluptuous figures, the art of the hip wiggle and strut is not lost on these women
![A woman's attractiveness is heavily affected by the way she walks. Scientists have revealed an Angelina Jolie (pictured) style strut with wiggling hips can make her appear far more attractive to onlookers](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/11/11/15E7601000000514-0-image-a-33_1528711994674.jpg)
A woman’s attractiveness is heavily affected by the way she walks. Scientists have revealed an Angelina Jolie (pictured) style strut with wiggling hips can make her appear far more attractive to onlookers
![Three versions of the same woman, each seen by a different group who graded them for attractiveness. Volunteers rated each woman on a scale of one - seven to see how important gait was](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/11/13/4D21A70400000578-5829435-Three_versions_of_the_same_woman_each_seen_by_a_different_group_-a-24_1528721774182.jpg)
Three versions of the same woman, each seen by a different group who graded them for attractiveness. Volunteers rated each woman on a scale of one – seven to see how important gait was
Dr Morrison is now hoping to expand the research into several fields.
He says it would be interesting to see if the results varied in different cultures, as the perception of beauty changes.
Dr Morrison is also interested in seeing if gait can be used as a gauge of attractiveness in men.
It remains unclear if a person can appear more attractive by changing their walk.
Dr Morrison said: ‘It would be interesting to test if people can actively change their movement to attract or deter mates – using such knowledge is similar in evolutionary psychology terms to a woman wearing red lipstick or eyeliner, both of which directly mimic signals of fertility, youth or health.’
The research was published in the journal Visual Cognition.