The "power tie" of the 1990s--now the power "leg cross" of the 2000's?

Link to picture please?

I was always taught the leg over leg cross as a womans way of crossing her legs and the open triangular leg cross as the mans way. But you are right, i have noticed obama doing the leg over leg thing.
I guess it depends on the guy really, i mean obama doesnt look feminine like that, but im more of a “open triangular leg cross” kind of guy

hahaha damn I always do this even though some people think its girly. Its my most comfortable pose when working. I think it has to do with a person’s figure, I’m tall and lean, and although I can do the open triangle I prefer the not so open one. So I guess this makes me a man of power :D

the closed leg fold-over for men, in my opinion, is not feminine at all. if you can do it, it just simply says this: “i can do it because i’m trim enough and hey, because i’m in charge and i know who i am, you can do it too.”

obama: sasha, baby, bring me my coffee over there. thank you baby—now as i was saying hillary…

see the look?

My guy friends were discussing this the other day. They mentioned the difficulty of discreetly moving <ahem> a certain organ to properly cross the legs.

I don’t know if the position speaks of power (I think it really depends on the position of the arms and shoulders). It definitely is an expression of a certain rigidity, as opposed to the laid-back “triangle” leg-cross.

I’ve always thought of it in a formal vs casual way. Open triangle is Everyman, wearing jeans and a T-shirt, while leg-over-leg is more Executive, wearing suit and tie. Both can be the same man, under different circumstances.

I think the leg over leg looks more professional. Meaning when you have leg over leg you are more symmetrical and evenly spaced, when you have the triangle leg going it looks unorganized, and you have this appendage just sticking out to one side. The triangle leg cross just seems more like a comfort thing.
Although I was taught as a child the leg over leg was more seen for women. What I am thinking is woman were once limited to only leg over leg seeing as woman at one time could not wear pants, there fore leg over leg was appropriate so as not to expose oneself. But now that pants are made for all I see the triangle sitting style as a lounging style and the leg over leg as a professional style.

There you have it my analysis of the leg cross. Haha.

I always thought that the leg over leg thing was what European men did. American guys did the triangle thing, because Americans just seem to do whatever takes up the most room, for some reason.

@answerjill – LOL! True. You rarely see a cowboy in a western flick daintily crossing his legs just so.

The stereotype used to be that Americans are less refined and more troublesome. Nowadays, that doesn’t really hold up. How often do you associate a cockney accent with a less-than-bourgeois Brit?

Now that you mention it, though, I can easily imagine a European man sitting back in his chair, cross-legged, sipping his coffee and enjoying the cool breeze drifting in through a cafe window. I take back my comment about this type of body position being “uptight”.

I remember being told somewhere that men shouldn’t cross their ankles, that that was the girly thing. I don’t see that as being girly. I don’t see any of these positions as
being girly. And why would “girly” be a bad thing? Tanto confuso.

I don’t see the whole point in crossing legs, period. Why not keep both your feet on the floor? I guess I can see women doing it, maybe. But still, a woman could cross at the ankles with both feet on the floor and still be discreet and feminine. Why do you have to hang one leg over the other? The whole practice seems wonky to me.

I’ve always been taught that you cross your legs like that when you’re wearing a suit. Prevents wrinkles.

It’s also easier on my hips, and many times when I’m in a meeting I don’t have room for the open triangle.

It’s bad for your knees.

I guess I just like it because it makes my lap closer to my body. It’s only useful in some cases, though. Maybe it’s some subconscious attempt to resume the fetal position?

Actually, I prefer sitting in the cross-legged in a different way. Unfortunately, many people give me funny looks when I do this on a chair.

@Andrew: Somebody raised you right ; )

I have always envied folks who could cross their legs in any fashion. My father did the leg over leg move and always looked good doing it.

Even when I was thin, I couldn’t do it. My legs just don’t bend that way. It’s actually uncomfortable.

I’m a leg over leg guy myself, because the open-triangle make my crossed leg fall asleep almost 100% of the time.

However, I was raised that leg over leg is professional, open triangle is just everyday.

I’m fairly slim, but I can’t sit in either position comfortably. I usually sit with my ankles crossed or with one ankle tucked under the knee. If I’m sitting on a couch I’ll usually sit cross-legged.

I have hyper-mobile joints in my ankles, so I like to bend them around while I’m sitting. This is probably why I prefer these positions.
Speaking of which, I just got home from dance rehearsal, so my ankles are killing me.

When I have to be formal, they’re usually straight flat on the ground, not too far apart.