We use different lacing styles depending on the shape of our feet, and different techniques can be used to adjust the fit after injuries to relieve pain. The combination of the shape of your foot and the lacing, as well as the style of the shoe, will determine the type of lacing technique that should be applied.
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Before we move into the most common or best ways to lace your tennis shoes, we will first cover the standard crisscross lacing.
This method is most commonly used as it helps wrap the shoe well around and tighten around the foot, especially for narrow feet would be the standard Criss Cross lacing with a runner’s loop also referred to as lack lacing.
Why with the runners’ loop? Well as we are referring to lacing tennis shoes and this involves lateral movements, running, quick steps and constantly moving directions we would need to have a good grip on the lace not to keep redoing them.
So, we start the lacing from the bottom eyelet of the shoe and pass the shoelace horizontally through the eyelet from over and under. Then cross the lace to make an “X” and pass the lace through the eyelet on the opposite side, making sure the end of each lace has equal length.
Continue crossing the laces from over to under until you reach the second to last eyelet. Here, we need to run the lace up on the same side leaving a gap between the top side of the second to last eyelet to cross each lace from the opposite side through the created loop and pull hard before making the final bow tie.
How to lace tennis shoes to slip on
This technique is called free Straight lacing, first take the lace and thread it through the bottom eyelet from over to under. Then take the thread from the right up through the second eyelet from under and over straight across to the left second eyelet.
Now take the other lace on the left side of the shoe and thread it up through the third eyelet from under to over and across to the fourth eyelet on the right side. Repeat these steps until you reach the top.
If followed correctly, both laces should come out on the inner side of the foot. From here, you need to tighten the laces into a knot and tuck the remaining strings into the shoe.
How to lace Gucci tennis shoes
The most common and stylish lacing of Gucci shoes would be Straightbar lacing – this also releases the tension on the top of your foot, which is a good idea when putting on new Gucci tennis shoes.
With this method, you will be left with an extra lace at the top of the shoe as to a normal cross pattern. To get started, you need to bring both laces to the same side of the shoe, eyelet one and eyelet two. The lace on eyelet one will run up the same side of the shoe, loop through eyelet three and go directly across. The lace on eyelet two will run up the same side of the shoe, loop through eyelet four and go directly across.
Once you have both laces on the same side, you repeat the pattern of up to and over until you reach the top of the shoe where only one lace of the side will cross to the other side in-order to tie the laces.
How to lace tennis shoes for wide feet
Lydiard lacing, also called Straightbar lacing, is great for wide feet as it loosens the entire shoe. It gives the foot more space, allows the foot to function more freely.
Lydiard lacing is named after its founder Arthur Lydiard who was a well-known endurance coach. He came up with this lacing technique to help with blood circulation for long distance runners’ feet by relieving pressure on the sinews and bones.
How to lace tennis shoes for high arches
If you have high arches and you feel a tightness or pain on the top of your foot when lacing your shoes, you need to do a Volume lacing. This involves lacing your shoes as normally but threading the lace vertically over where you feel that the arch of your foot is tight and painful.
However, if you feel pain in the forefoot, you need to create this open space under the lower eyelets of the shoe.
How to lace tennis shoes without tying
To lace your shoes without tying them you can use elastic lacing, with elastic lacing you only need to tie them once. Or you can do the Straight lacing technique (described above) for easy slip on. But, I would recommend getting a lace anchor, this will be like a barrier and stop the lace from moving. The lace anchor can also be adjusted to a tighter fit after you have put your shoes on, and you do not need to tie your laces ever again.
Simply take one of the anchors and loop the lace through the first anchor eyelet facing the ridged side down towards the bottom of the shoes and then back in through the second anchor eyelet. From here you can pull the lace as much as is needed to adjust to your preferred fit. You can tuck the remaining lace in the shoe and do the same on the other side. There you have it, laced tennis shoes without tying it.
Why lacing shoes in tennis is important?
Lacing your shoes to make the tennis shoe to fit the shape of your foot is very important, not only for the need of comfort but mainly for keeping your feet healthy as we use them all the time especially in competitions.
The right shoe lacing can make the difference from not being able to stand the size or brand of your tennis shoes to loving the fit.
How do best players lace their shoes?
For instance, the world number one WTA women tennis player Iga Swiatek uses shoes with added mid-foot support and tied with a normal crisscross lacing.
This seems to be comfortable for her and no additional excess lacing has been applied as noticed in one of her latest competitions when re-doing her laces during the match, which most probably was just a way to calm her nerves.
Alcaraz Carlos, world’s current men’s number one WTA tennis player, laces his shoes the same as the crisscross lacing with a runner’s loop. Which again is not a specific way of lacing your shoes, but nevertheless does not mean that he has not tied his shoes a different way during his professional career.
For tennis players I recommend applying mid foot support. Here you would need to implement the loops in the area where you are trying to add support. This lacing is great for quick lateral changes and directions.
If you still feel a lot of movement in your shoes you can also add the loops at the end of the shoe to reduce excess space.
Another good lacing technique is the relieving toe pain lacing and I do recommend this to loads of tennis players especially if you have one toe pointing out that always seems to hit the edge of the shoe.
This technique lifts the top of your shoe up and of your toes therefore, helps to stop your feet from sliding forward and touching the material. To apply it, start making one end of your lace longer than the other as the longer end will be used to wrap across and up the entire length of the shoe.
And the short end of the lace will go straight from the bottom eyelet diagonally across to the top eyelet.
Another important point to add is that shoes are not supposed to fit your feet perfectly tight around the toes. You should always have a 1 cm or 0.5 inch room for your feet to have free movements. I see many tennis players missing this point and I stress to go and have their feet fitted to find their ideal size.
Some players have issues with the fit around their heels, causing heel slipping. If you categorize yourself to be one of these players, the best shoe lacing technique to use would be lack lacing, and this can also be used to gain support over the mid-foot area.
