These hands-free slip-on shoes from Kizik are ideal for lazy wearers like me

Kizik shoes have a unique heel design that lets you slide them on, hands-free, like slip-on shoes. The springy heel compresses and bounces back to give you the full support of a trainer once on, without having to slide your thumb down the back or undo the laces.

In the summer, I live in sandals. I love that I can slip them on in seconds to head out with the dog, collect parcels, nip to the local store, or sit on the deck. In the cooler months, however, I resign myself to slipping on an old pair of trainers. I've usually destroyed the heel of them within a few months, as I'm often too lazy to pull them on properly. Instead, I stand on backs when I put my feet in and wear them like glorified clogs.

I'm happy to put on a proper pair of shoes or trainers when going out to a bar or for dinner, but for the fifth dog walk of the day or another package left on the doorstep, I just can't be bothered to spend the time. That's why I now wear my Kiziks all the time.

These modern, eco-knit trainers sit by my door and are my go-to for any quick outing. The difference between these and my old broken slip-ons is that I can also wear these when heading further afield. I even wore them when heading through airport security and boarding a rather fancy flight. Apart from how little time it took me to get them back on again after their x-ray, you would never know these weren't regular sneakers.

I was originally due to test these Kizik shoes around the gigantic halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center in January but due to COVID cancellations, they became my home pair, and probably got more use because of it. The pair I tested were the Men's Madrid Eco-Knit, in light gray. I liked the simple design and figured they would go with most outfits.

The fit is slightly smaller than I'm used to and a little snug on my toes, so I'd recommend ordering half a size larger than your usual pick. I tied the laces when I first put them on and haven't touched them since, though you can choose to hide the laces or take them out altogether if you prefer, as they are purely decorative.

Otherwise, the shoes are really comfortable, and while not as stylish as some fashion trainers, they certainly look better than my old beaten-up slip-on trainers. 

If the plain light gray ones aren't to your taste, this pair also comes in six other colors, and four other styles of shoe in both the men's and women's ranges – all named after cities. They are also all available in both regular and wide widths.

The Kizik Madrid Eco-Knit shoes start from $99 / £94 / AU$162. If you regularly kill the backs of your shoes, need an easy pair to throw on, or just like the idea of never tieing laces again, these are definitely worth investing in.