How to Lace Your Running Shoes Properly: The Complete Guide

Lacing your running shoes: a crucial detail

Often overlooked, lacing is nevertheless a crucial part of running shoe fit.

✓ It contributes to overall comfort. Laces that are too tight create pressure points across the top of the foot. Too loose, and they cause friction, potentially leading to blisters, as well as a lack of support.

✓ It contributes to foot hold and stability by securing the heel and keeping the midfoot locked in place. Properly laced shoes also reduce the risk of an ankle sprain.

✓ It can be adjusted to your foot shape and personal preferences. Beyond choosing the right shoe size, lacing lets you adapt the fit to different foot shapes, potential issues and the sensations each runner prefers.

The fundamentals of optimal lacing

Put simply, lacing comes down to four key points:

• Use the right tension: the challenge is finding a tension that is neither too tight nor too loose. As a rough guide, once the laces are adjusted, you should be able to slide one finger between the tongue and the laces.

• Aim for symmetry: keeping similar lace lengths on both sides helps ensure even tension.

• Choose the right length and material: laces that are too short rule out some techniques, while flat laces often hold better than round ones. Elastic laces are also available and particularly useful in triathlon because they speed up shoe changes, although they offer less precise adjustment.

• Use a double knot: quick and easy, it keeps the lacing secure.

A few common mistakes are easy to avoid:

✓ Leaving long lace ends dangling: a reliable way to trip! Tie a double knot, tuck the ends under the laces or place them in the lace pocket if the shoe has one.

✓ Tightening only at the top: tension should build progressively from the bottom up.

✓ Ignoring the extra eyelets: they are there to lock the heel in place.

✓ Never changing your lacing: it makes sense to adjust your method according to the session, whether it is intervals or a long run, the weather, since feet swell in the heat, and the terrain, from road to trail, flat to hilly.

8 essential lacing techniques

Technique 1: standard criss-cross lacing

➜ A versatile everyday technique for runners without any specific foot issues.

➜ How to do it: Thread the laces from the bottom up, crossing them at each eyelet. Tighten progressively to distribute pressure evenly. Finish with a standard knot or a double knot.

Technique 2: the runner's knot

➜ A technique that prevents heel slip and limits rubbing and blisters at the back of the foot. Useful for runners with narrow heels or shoes that are slightly too big.

➜ How to do it: Lace normally up to the final eyelet, but do not cross the laces through it. Feed each lace end into the top eyelet on the same side to create a small loop. Cross the lace ends and pass each one through the loop on the opposite side. Pull down to tighten, then tie the final knot.

Technique 3: lacing for a wide forefoot

➜ A technique that creates more room in the toe box and reduces pressure on the forefoot. For wide feet or runners who want more space at the front of the shoe.

➜ How to do it: Start lacing one eyelet above the lowest one. Continue with standard lacing without tightening the forefoot too much. Finish with a heel lock if needed, using technique 2.

Technique 4: lacing for a high instep

➜ A technique that relieves pressure across the top of the foot. Also known as skip lacing or window lacing. For feet with more volume over the instep.

➜ How to do it: Lace normally, using technique 1, up to the painful area. Skip the eyelet that sits over the pressure point to create a pressure-relief window. Resume technique 1 through to the top.

Technique 5: straight-bar lacing

➜ A technique for reducing pressure points. Also known as bar lacing. For feet that are sensitive to pressure.

➜ How to do it: The laces run horizontally from one side to the other without crossing over the tongue. Since it is difficult to explain without a diagram or video, a quick online search is worthwhile to see exactly how to do it.

Technique 6: lacing to prevent black toenails

➜ A technique used in particular by trail runners who suffer from black toenails on descents, but also by road runners with sensitive toes. It helps prevent the toes from hitting the front of the shoe.

➜ How to do it: Use technique 2 to lock the heel securely in place. Tighten the forefoot a little more, but not excessively. Check the size: shoes that are too small cause repeated impacts against the front of the shoe.

Technique 7: asymmetrical lacing

➜ A technique for pain along the side of the foot. It shifts pressure away from an irritated area.

➜ How to do it: Start with standard lacing at the first eyelet, then gradually shift where the laces cross to avoid the sensitive area. If necessary, skip an eyelet on one side only.

Technique 8: lacing for a sensitive Achilles tendon

➜ A technique for reducing rubbing at the heel and tension around an irritated Achilles tendon.

➜ How to do it: Tighten progressively through the midfoot and leave the lacing slightly looser over the instep.

Lacing is an art that deserves every runner's attention, whatever their preferred discipline. Over long distances such as the marathon, lacing your running shoes properly matters even more: the effort lasts longer, and your feet need to disappear from your thoughts. Every runner should find the technique that works for them and adapt it to the session and terrain.