Keep Active This Spring With Wide Fitting Trainers

Keep Active this spring with wide fitting trainers and active shoes
Let’s keep active outdoors and enjoy everything spring has to offer!

Spring really is a beautiful time of year. The weather is warming up, the flowers are blooming and there's an air of anticipation as to what the year might hold. It really is a joy to be out and about at this time of year.

For many people with wide feet or foot health issues, though, getting out of the house and keeping active can be a painful experience, with shoes pinching or rubbing, and this can have a huge impact on overall health.

But it needn't be like this. So what are the best wide-fitting shoes for exercise?

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NHS guidance suggests that adults should do some type of physical activity every day, including walking or a gentle jog, but even these can be too painful with the wrong shoes.

With well-fitting wide-fitting trainers or leisure shoes for women and men you can get outdoors and keep active in comfort, contributing to an overall healthier lifestyle and a positive spiral of health improvements. Even people requiring extra-wide fit can still get out in comfort with our shoes available to 6E or 8E width fittings - that's EEEEEEEE - and to ladies' size 9 and men's size 14.

The right wide-fitting shoes really can have this impact so we've outlined our pick of the best wide-fitting trainers for you this spring to get you outdoors and exercising gently, to see a new you for 2024!

Unless mentioned, the styles below are available in our 2V and 6V variable width fittings, containing specially designed removable insoles for extra internal space or for the insertion of orthotic or other specialist insoles, making them ideal for people with high or fallen arches or other foot conditions requiring a specialist insole.

Find out more about our wide and extra-wide fittings

Disclaimer:
Our "trainers" and active casual shoes are leisure shoes, not specialist shoes designed for sport.

We now offer wide-fitting trainers with three different toe shapes – round, square and almond - for the perfect fit for your feet.

You find shoes on the high street in different sizes, and increasingly in slightly different widths, but how easy is it to find shoes to match your foot shape?

Our mission is to offer shoes which give the "FREEDOM" to be able to walk in complete comfort and the "JOY" of living your life to the full without thinking about your feet!

We know that to achieve this, we need to offer footwear that accommodates as many people as is viable, not just for different length of foot but for foot WIDTH and foot SHAPE.

Trainers in the wrong toe shape can cramp and squeeze your toes, which, in addition to the discomfort that this will cause, can also cause changes to the biomechanics of your body, such as issues with gait, posture or unnecessary wear and tear on joints.

So, knowing your foot shape can be very important!

Find out your foot shape and learn the best toe shape for your feet »

The best wide and extra-wide fitting trainers firstly have the width and depth that you need for your foot to avoid squashing and squeezing. They also offer the support that you need, where you need it with the right level of stability to prevent you turning over on your ankle.

Our shoes come with built in back stiffeners for support and many have flared soles, in a choice of style: many, like Diss and Whitworth that are slightly wider at the bottom, and our brand new super deep wedge soles like Pollyanna and Panther that include an on-trend extra-flared sole that also ensures optimum stability.

The best shoes for exercise also have a secure fit to avoid rubbing (or coming off altogether) during exercise, have grippy soles to ensure you’re sure of foot and offer the cushioning that you need to avoid too much wear on joints.

All of our wide and extra-wide trainers have these features in spades and, with features like soft leather or stretch fabric uppers to feel soft against your feet, and a genuinely wide and deep fit they’re SO comfy.

1. Diss is a classic wide-fitting trainer style shoe in soft leather & mesh upper, to keep your feet cool, with almond shaped toe designed for comfort, slightly pointed at the end for a stylish look. A lace-up fastening offers the most secure, adjustable fit and a grippy rubber sole is ideal for active feet. Available in 3 great colour options.

2. Stylish trainer Pheasant features a round toe shape to allow extra room for toes, has twin cut-to-fit strap fastening in suede or leather with mesh stretch panels for extra comfort and breathability.

The air-bubble sole offers extra cushioning as you walk, the air-cooled mesh design allows air to flow round the foot, keeping them cool on warm days and the adjustable straps allow you to tighten or loosen the shoe as required as your feet swells through the day.

3. Super cute Bat showcases our new super-deep flared wedge sole that offers support and stability, as well as a modern, fashion-conscious look. The outside zip means that you can set the laces once for a secure fit and then use the zip for easy access.

4. Square-toed Panther features stretch mesh panels that expand to mould to the shape of your foot to offer so much comfort! The mesh design allows air to flow round the foot and the seam-free stretch toe-box ensures minimal rubbing. The strap-fastening allows a secure fit alongside ease of adjustment that make it arthritis and diabetes-friendly and great for feet that swell.

5. Wide-fitting trainer Fox is another style from our Stretch range, containing an almond shaped toe box with stretch faux leather panels that mould around awkward shaped feet for the ultimate in comfort whilst you walk, and also blend into the leather upper so they look just like normal trainers. Dual straps can be easily adjusted at will and can even cut to the desired length to avoid flapping and catching whilst you exercise.

6. Riley is a classic wide-fitting trainer in soft leather that is designed with easy access in mind. The twin-strap fastening opens up really wide to allow easy foot entry for extra wide or swollen feet while the stretch fabric moulds to the shape of the foot and provides extra room. The extended strap can be cut to the required length for your foot*.

7. Sporty sandal Peel is great for summer walks and days out. Easy to slip on and off with two adjustable straps for ultimate adjustment and an ankle strap for extra stability. Air-bubble technology sole, padded textile lining and a Cushioned Comfort footbed with extra broad tread mean it’s SO comfy it’s perfect for all day wear.

8. Take to walking in our super-comfortable walking shoes - specially designed for walkers with wide and extra-wide feet, they accommodate thick socks too! Wyoming are waterproof and even come with a bellows tongue to avoid water entry from above, ensuring your feet stay dry whatever the weather. They have removable ‘Air Comfort’ padded insoles for extra depth or to insert your own orthotic insoles and you can be sure-footed with our flexible & grippy rubber soles. The round toe shape and deep, seam-free toe box give the ultimate toe comfort! Also discover our ladies’ walking boot Nebraska 2 and men’s walking styles Colorado 2 and Utah 2.

9. Men’s wide-fitting trainer Benedict has everything for the dapper gentleman. Supremely stylish in a choice of four great colours, with lace-up fastening for a secure fit, round toe shape for toes to move and a grippy rubber sole to avoid slips!

10. Our leisure shoes like Dawson have a sporty fashion look (just like ‘normal’ trainers) - but they are wider & deeper, allowing room for your feet, with hidden cushioning so that you can enjoy the pleasure of walking without discomfort.

Dawson is a classic active style with lace-up style for secure fit, a round, deep toe-box to give plenty of room for your toes, removable air-comfort insoles and a grippy rubber sole. The textile mesh upper allows your feet to stay cool as your body warms up!

11. New trainer Bennett features a single strap fastening for easy adjustment and foot entry. It is arthritis, bunion and diabetes-friendly and great for feet that swell. What’s more, it looks fab in classic navy or grey suede.

So, there you have our top 10 wide-fitting and extra-wide shoes for keeping active this Spring and Summer.

Browse wide-fitting active shoes for women
Browse wide-fitting active shoes for men

We know that it’s really difficult to order footwear online and find the perfect fit, but we want to make it as easy, risk-free and stress-free as possible. That’s why we offer free postage on returns and exchanges on all UK orders so that, if you’re in the UK and have ordered from us and the shoes aren’t right for whatever reason, you can give us a call to discuss the problem and return them to us, unworn except for trying on to exchange for a different size, style or fitting without paying a penny more in postage.

Once you’ve found your perfect fit, you’ll never look back!

We hope that you agree that our wide-fitting shoes, trainers and sandals offer the perfect fit for every wide, deep or problem foot!

Did you know, if you need 6E, 6V or 8E fitting footwear and have a qualifying condition, that you might be eligible for VAT relief?

This means that you could essentially benefit from a discount of 20%. And what's more, our promotional discount codes still apply, meaning you can gain further savings.

We make it easy to claim your VAT relief by clearly listing the VAT exempt price against qualifying products, and provide a very short form to fill out as part of the checkout process when ordering your 6E, 8E or 6V fitting shoes.

Qualifying conditions for VAT free purchases include physical or mental impairment that affects your ability to carry out everyday activities, for example, blindness; conditions treated as chronic sickness, such as diabetes, arthritis or lymphedema; and long-term illnesses.

Look out for the link underneath our available fittings on each product page to claim your VAT exemption.

If you’re unsure about anything at all to do with our styles, features or fittings and whether they’re right for you, please do contact us on +44 (0)1933 311 077, Monday to Friday, 9-5 to speak with one of our friendly, knowledgeable UK based customer services team, who will be delighted to help.

OR would you like some in-person help to find the perfect fit for your feet? Then why not book an appointment and visit our Fitting Centre in Rushden, Northamptonshire.

We offer a traditional, personal service to help you find the perfect shoes either for naturally broad feet, to accommodate orthotics and or for foot health issues such as arthritis, lymphedema, diabetes, bunions and many more.

Our appointment system ensures you'll receive our team's full attention and there's no obligation to buy.
Check out our Fitting Centre details today for further information.

*The strap can be cut to the correct length. Please note, once cut the shoes cannot be returned.

Why not check out some of our other blog posts to help you with you find your perfect shoe.
A DB Shoe for every occasion this Summer »
Canvas and Sandals for Summertime »
This Spring there's lots to look forward to »