Let's not run away with this. Perhaps the lack of clarity comes from the reporter and not the podiatrist but: it is one thing to demonstrate that your talus is flexible enough to wear a 3 inch heel without pain; that is NOT the same thing as saying that is your OPTIMAL heel height that should be worn all the time.
That measuring test is also affected by how tight the Achilles tendon is... which will automatically be tighter if you have been wearing heels 3 days in a row. Which means next time your feet hit the floor in the morning, you will get heel pain from stretching. So varying heel height is important, even if you do tolerate high ones comfortably.
My daughter (a highland dancer) discovered something online that was more useful I think. It uses a similar measuring technique, but the result tells you WHICH heel height you can wear most comfortably, when you do choose to wear heels. (So for example you might find that 3" is more comfortable than 2 1/2.) I will forward her info source if I can find it.
Also dancer terminology, but when I mentioned how comfortable I found a shoe in a particular mid heel height, she said "oh, that must be where your half-point is".
