Running 101: Finally Learned How to Tie My Running Shoes!

Have you ever wondered why running shoe laces are so gawt damned long?

Seriously, I mean WTF!?!?  Are we supposed to wrap these fvckers around our ankles and up the middle to each other to get a satisfying fit?  

Do you remember the day you learned to lace and tie your shoes?  

I do.

My great-grandmother, with her long flowing silver hair, tied neatly in a bun under a black hairnet always kept her hair up during the day, sat patiently next to me on the stairwell taught me "bunny ears" on my shoes.  It was a cloudy day.  I remember I was sad.  She used the opportunity to distract me from my sorrows and like that, I learned how to lace and tie my shoes.  Right there on the stairwell.  

And simple "bunny ears" is how I tied my shoes for decades.  

If you're like me and has used or still using the tried and true "bunny" method for casual day-to-day use could be the thing causing your running and your feet to suffer.  Damned you Great-grandma!  Damned you and your bunny ears!

The reason running shoe laces seem so long is to provide you with options!  

There are A LOT of options!  And when you lean the options, your running shoe comfort will forever be altered and you may find the thing that is causing your feet to distress, is not your form, your pace, or your lack of sophisticated next generation sock selection, but simply how you lace and tie your shoes.  

Have you heard of the "heel lock" method?  No!  Neither had I when I complained to Patrica at my local shoe store how the heel seemed to be loose in the shoes she recommended.  

She sat there in front of me and I watched in child-like curiosity as she put the "bunny ears" on a twist and used the final holes to create new "bunny ears" which cinched down the heels and transformed how the shoes felt when pushing off.  I'm jumping in the store with renewed enthusiasm and excitement!

I was five years old again!  

Heel Lock Lacing Method, using the final eyelets on the shoes

No more rubbing on my rear heel!  This was a second coming of lacing my shoes!  [cue choir singing]

Upon returning home, all of my running shoes soon sported the now infamous "heel lock" method.  They were all pre-tied for easy slipping on and off.  Why are they pre-tied you ask?  Because on long runs your feet swell.  They were tied for the swelling of my feet, not the pre-swell size.  Fvcking genius!

You got a hot spot somewhere on your feet?  

BAMM!  Alternate lace that byotch!  Problem solved!

Brooks used for Daytona 100 Ultra Marathon: Note my right foot hot spot is pronounced due to bone spur; left foot when swollen would develop a hot spot near the top.  Laced each shoe differently to alleviate the specific foot issues.  Both shoes are heel locked to prevent heel slip.  

I've used various methods in various shoes depending on their use to get proper fitment - Link to my Pinterest board.  And I've used two different methods on the right and left shoes, as during my Daytona 100 run (picture above)!

Yeah, it may look funny to others, but fvck 'em, but I'm not out here trying to impress y'all azzes with style and fashion.  I'm trying to complete this damned run with little or no injuries and in as much comfort as freaking possible!

Left: Adidas PureBoost PDRs - traditionally laced, foot has no issues with these shoes and I do not heel lock these kicks.  However, these aren't long distance shoes and I only use for speed work and quick sessions.
Right:  Adidas Supernovas - heel locked and both shoes produce a hot spot after 10 plus miles near the top of my foot.  Skip lace method used to alleviate this issue.  

Now I could have recreated others work and recorded my own YouTube video for this ish, but I decided A) I don't have fvcking time to recreate what is already out there and B) my video would possibly get pulled from the profanity-laced nature of the video because these methods could totally fvcking change your life!  

So if you haven't watched the video below, watch it.  This video just may change your life and alter the way you think of how to lace your running shoes.  Thank your grandma later.