9 replies to this topic

[Fiftyplus]

Hi All, As I am a triathlon tragic, I use elastic laces with toggles in my shoes for quicker transitions when racing. But now use them all the time, for training as well as fun runs. I never have to worry about laces coming undone. Although I haven't had any problems so far, am I running a risk of injury if I up the distances of my runs from 10k, or while running on trails. eg. lack of foot support from shoes or slipping? Has anyone had any bad experiences with them?

[southy]

Hi Stephen, I use elastic laces in my racers all the time (for several years now) & have never had any problems with them.They seem to evenly distribute the pressure of the laces on my feet more. They certainly are more comfortable to me. My only warning would be to make sure they are not too tight as sometimes the feet swell a little bit when racing.

[Fiftyplus]

Hi Southy,
Thanks, I find exactly the same, they're very comfortable. Just wondering why more runners don't use them, which is why I asked in the first place, thought I might be doing something wrong by wearing them.

[Ralph Wiggum]

For every three devotees, theres gotta be one against...
I bought some not really knowing what they were and could not get used to the sensation of my heel slipping. Awful, would never use them again as to me the entire concept of laces seems to be that they TIGHTEN you shoes. Just my opinion though, I can understand why others might love em.

[Uncle Dave]

I'm a self-confessed gumby who now has problems with grown-up laces as a result of building up a dependence on the elastic ones in recent times.

The elastic laces I've used are certainly convenient, but definitely don't fit as snug as tie-up laces.

I'd whole heartedly recommend elastic laces for triathlons, especially shorter ones (where transition time represents a greater proportion of overall racing time), but for straight running, I'd definitely use tie-ups. Now I've just got to re-learn how to tie them properly! :)

[Spud]

My experience is elastic laces are fine for road running, but not so good for trail running. The foot moves around too much on uneven terrain, gotta watch them ankles.
;)

[Steve 'The Footman']

The purpose of elastic laces is to make it quicker to get your shoes on and off. The trade off is that the shoe is more likely to move independent of the foot. In order to get your foot into the shoe it is necessary for the laces to be looser then they would be if you made them a perfect tension. You can overcome this by having a firmer set of laces in the bottom half of eyelets and a looser set on the top half of eyelets.

When you run your laces should be firmer than what would be comfortable for walking around. Any slipping causes a loss of power in your stride. Stability issues are the major cause of injury so elastic laces will also result in a loss of control. However some people can get away with wearing them all the time while others have slipping heels and feet that float in the shoe.

If you feel like you are clawing your toes to keep the shoe on or keep turning ankles or getting injuries then I would suspect the laces. It is convienience (laziness?) rather than function to wear elastic laces all the time. But there are those lucky few who can do it safely.

[southy]

I find you do have to get the tightness right - too loose & they slip around (not good) , too tight & they make the top of my forefoot go numb. I use all the eyelets. It takes a bit of practice and experimenting to get the right combinations. It works best in racers.

[Colin]

As I am a devotee of running without socks, I find that with the correct fitting shoe I never have slippage problems, no blisters. Even when the laces are slightly looser than normal. So elastics are no problem.

Too tight instead is a problem for me.

Sheer comfort at the expense of smelly shoes :o

[Fiftyplus]

Thanks for all of your interesting replies.
I may have answered my own question on the weekend. Did a trail run on Friday, no problems. Did a road run yesterday, not paying attention and managed to step on the only rock on the way and twisted my ankle, and hobbled home. Just a light sprain I hope. Might try normal laces for a while and see if it makes any difference.