What Knot to do?

Are you a single knotter, a double knotter, or someone who goes off script and have your own personal technique?

There's nothing worse than standing amongst a crowd of runners at the beginning of a race. All elbowing and jostling for the most advantageous starting spot when all of a sudden, you feel your trainer become slack. GAH!

Looking down with a mix of dismay and panic, it’s as you've feared. With only seconds before the whistle goes and the herd stampedes, you dive to re-tie your shoelace managing only a single knot, not the double you usually do (there's no time!). Fighting your way to the surface and ignoring the withering looks from seasoned competitors you keep your fingers crossed and pray to all the gods you know of, that your laces hold throughout the race.

A secure knot is paramount for peace of mind when running. Nobody wants to lose important seconds re-tying their laces. It's a mistake you only make once. But it's what happened to me the other weekend and threw me off balance. I spent the entire race wondering if the knot was slipping and praying instead of focusing on the course ahead. So I thought I'd share my learning experience and subsequent research with you and teach you how to tie your laces.

Why do shoe laces come undone in the first place? The best piece of research I found on the internet was from the clever bods at the University of California - Berkeley. They concluded that it was the combination of the whipping and stomping forces and the imbalance between the length of the bow to the tail that often leads to catastrophic knot failure. And it all happens within a matter of seconds!

I remember being taught how to tie my shoelaces by my mum. We did the standard knot-tying version otherwise known as the 'Loop, swoop and pull'. You make a loop with the left side, cross over the top with the right and then poke it through the 'hole' in the middle and pull it tight. The bow needs to sit flat across the top of your shoe. If the bow sits diagonally (running from toe to heel) then you've made a granny knot. This, I'm afraid to say has the weakest integrity of all knots and, is doomed to fail. This knot usually happens because during the 'swoop' part you've gone under, not over the loop.

But I find that even the standard single knot tends to fail, so you end up doing a double knot which is fairly tricky to unpick with your fingernails especially when wet and muddy.

My eureka moment came when I happened across this little beauty of a knot on a website totally dedicated to shoelaces. I urge you to go there if you have free time or are bored at work. It's jam-packed with information about various knots and suggestions for the best methods of tying.

I was drawn to the double slip knot and chose to give it a go. My first few attempts at tying it I found it to be a bit fiddly and if I'm honest, I still do. As they say, practice makes perfect (and consistency is the key!) so I’m working on it. But it felt secure and there is some resistance there when you un-tie it which gives it a promising feeling. I've been running with one of my laces knotted that way for the past two weeks. The other has been tied in its usual double knot style, and I can report back that the conventional double knot came undone twice out of 8 runs; mainly while ploughing through tall grass and brambles. The new knot held well and felt dependable; there is less 'give' even though it is slightly awkward to tie.

Me, tying my laces. I think my mum would be proud!

So mulling over the pros and cons of each knot, I came to the conclusion that I'm going to persist with the new style of knotting. The Double Slip Knot is tricky to tie and you do need to practice. It doesn't look that neat but then we all know appearances aren't everything as long as the knot holds. There is a very low risk of failure, I would argue. It's really simple and quick to untie, even when wet.

The Standard Double Knot (SDK) is easier to tie but I think that's mainly because I grew up doing the loop, swoop and pull method. It also doesn't look that neat but that doesn't really matter. There is a higher risk of failure as proven very scientifically by myself over the last two weeks and it takes longer to untie, especially when wet.

So, if you want to run a race with peace of mind, make sure you tie your trainers correctly. I’ve shown you what I consider to be the best way to do it- using the double slip knot method. But don’t take my word for it- try it out for yourself, It’s not difficult, but it will take some practice! And if you still have trouble tying your shoe laces, or just want someone to show you how it’s done, contact me. I offer personal training as well as lessons on how to tie your shoe laces the right way and I’ll be happy to help.

Happy Running!