I'm a Skechers fan, and have been since my teenage years. I really love the Go Walk 3 range. Padded around the back of the ankle, so no rubbing, and nice soft memory foam inners. A vast improvement on the previous Go Walks. I've not bought their trainer style shoes for a while, but being a child of the 90s, I prefer my footwear to be a little chunky and substantial, and that's what attracted me to these (And the fact that they were on offer at £17 at the time I bought them ;) ). You get two sets of laces in the box. The white ones are pre-threaded, but there's also a grey pair if you'd rather use those. I've left the white ones in, because I prefer the contrast. They seem decent quality. They're not quite rounded, because they have flat edges, so I've not had any trouble with them loosening themselves, as I seem to get with the rounded, tubular laces in some shoes. I have narrow feet, and I had to tighten the laces up significantly to get them to fit my foot. You can do that though, unlike some Skechers models which have the lace area fixed in place. It doesn't look daft at all on these if you have them tightened up - no loss of shape or puckering. Having read all the reviews from the Amazon.com USA reviewers, I decided to size up. I'm still trying to work out if that was the right thing to do, and I'll probably have to come back and update once I've worn these for a bit longer. I'm normally a 7 in Skechers, so I went for an 8. Having got them on my feet, I would say that sizing up half a size would probably be more sensible, rather than a full size. Unfortunately, these are only available in full sizes (At the time of purchase). I do think that a 7 would have been a bit tight, but I think the 8 is a just a tiny bit too large. Not clown-shoe large, but I do have to have them well tightened to keep them on my feet. These won't be ones to wear with the lases casually looped inside the shoe. Having said that, a 7 could well have been uncomfortably small, as these trainers are well padded inside. I suppose my advice would be to size up if you're between sizes or a half size normally. Comfort wise, they're just as nice as my Go Walks. They've not rubbed the back of my heel, pinched my toes or caused me discomfort anywhere. They're not at all heavy, although they're not as light as the Go Walk range. They are a more substantial shoe, and there's more support in these than the Go Walks. They have some grip, and I've worn them in the rain for a half hour dog walk, and not come home with wet socks. So far, I'm happy with my purchase. For walking the dog on the pavements, and general walking around in town, they're exactly what I need. Not sure I'd wear them for sports, but as a casual shoe, they'll be fine. For £17, they're a bargain, and I can live with them even if they do turn out to be too big once broken in.
