Women love shoes. Rarely chosen on the basis of how comfortable they are or how sensible, when picking out a pair of gorgeous sandals, boots or kitten heels, comfort is probably the last thing on our minds. Instead give us height, soft leather straps, pointy peep toes and beautiful detail in the colour and shape. We’ve moved on from buying shoes to serve a purpose, now all we want from them is to make our feet look fantastic. Shoes can transform an outfit, magically change the way our legs look in jeans and make a statement about who we are. Shoes do a lot of things, but help us get fit? When Fit Flop creator Marcia Kilgore came up with the summer shoe that claims to tone legs, strengthen muscles, burn calories and tighten bottoms with every step, we all stopped to listen.

The Fit Flop itself isn’t the usual shoe of choice based on looks alone. The chunky, rubbery wedge heel, sensible looking thick straps and dull choice of colours (pale blue, black and red) certainly don’t make this a fashionable shoe. But who cares if they get you a lean pair of pins while you walk?

The Fit Flop was created with Masai Barefoot Technology (MBT) in mind, the physiological footwear created by Swiss engineer Karl Muller. MBT footwear has been designed to evenly distribute the pressure the foot experiences when walking. Unlike a normal shoe, the MBT appears curved at the sole, resulting in a smooth, rocking motion when walking, acting as a shock absorber for the foot, fixing posture and supporting the back. As well as creating a better, healthier way of getting from A to B, MBT’s increase calorie burning and tone the legs by destabilising the foot, increasing stimulation of muscles that aren’t used to working so hard (just think how a barefoot walk on the beach can leave you with aching calves the next day).

So what makes the Fit Flop any different from MBTs? Aside from the hype, not much except the Fit Flop is a slightly better looking shoe made especially for women (although men can look forward to a flatter, streamlined range due for release next Spring). Fit Flops are the lady’s MBT. Yes they’re bulkier than your average summer sandal but they’re small enough to store in your handbag for the walk home from the office and aren’t too much of an eyesore to integrate into everyday wearing. Why bother with the gym when your legs are getting a workout all by themselves whilst you do the shopping? All we need now is a handbag that tones the arms, underwear that zaps cellulite and perhaps something to work on our wrinkles.