Real stories · A natural, comfy trainer

The lightweight trainers that feel like walking barefoot

I'm 67, and I'm on my feet a great deal — walking my dog Winnie, into town, round the shops. But my old trainers always felt heavy and clumpy, and they squeezed my toes together until they ached. I wanted something light and roomy that still gripped properly underfoot.

The ordinary trainers all seemed either narrow and stiff, or so padded they felt like boots. I'd started to think a comfortable, natural-feeling shoe with proper grip simply wasn't made for a woman my age.

Then I found the Avani barefoot trainers from a British label called York Boutique — grip-sole barefoot trainers in the summer sale. I chose the white, curious more than hopeful.

What a difference. They're feather-light, with a wide, roomy toe box so my toes can actually spread out, and a thin, flexible grip sole that grips the ground properly. The upper is soft and breathable. It genuinely feels like walking barefoot — but sure-footed, not squeezed.

Light as a feather and so roomy for the toes. My feet feel free again.

Trainers this comfortable, I assumed, would be seventy pounds. But York Boutique sells direct, so they were £34.95 in the summer sale. I've barely had them off since.

A friend asked about them on our walk, because I was striding along quite happily. They come in five colours — white, rose, black, blue and orange — and in sizes 3 to 12.

If your trainers feel heavy and cramped, do have a look while the sale's on. The Avani is rated 4.7 out of 5 by more than 300 women, it's £34.95 in the summer sale instead of £70 — half price — and the middle sizes always seem to go first.