How to Stop a Shoe Tongue from Sliding to the Side

Co-authored by Eric McClure

Last Updated: March 28, 2022 References Tested

It’s pretty annoying when you’re out and about and the tongue of your shoe keeps sliding to the side. You pull it back to its original position and then 5 minutes later it’s back on its side again! Luckily, this problem is easily solved if your shoes have a tongue loop, which is a small strip of fabric in the middle of your tongue. Since most sneakers, boots, and casual footwear have these, you should be good to go after you spend a few minutes re-lacing your shoes. If you don’t, there are a few other hacks you can use to keep that tongue right where it belongs.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Tongue Loop

1
Check your tongue to see if there’s a small fabric loop in the middle. Most sneakers, boots, and casual footwear have a tongue loop. Grab one of your shoes and loosen the laces up so you can see every portion of the tongue. Look for a ¹⁄₂–1 in (1.3–2.5 cm) fabric loop somewhere in the middle of the tongue. If you have one, you can use this to hold your tongue up and keep it from sliding around.^{[1]
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- It’s extremely uncommon these days, but some shoes have a set of vertical slits that are cut into the tongue instead of fabric loop. You can use these slits the same way as a tongue loop if you have them.
- This works with basically any lace pattern so long as the laces cross over one another at an angle. Out of all of the popular ways to lace shoes, the only shoelace pattern that you can’t do this with are the parallel bars.
2
Unlace your shoes down to the row of eyelets just below the loop. Starting at the top of each shoe, undo the laces by pulling them out through the eyelets, which are the parallel sets of holes that hold your shoelaces in place. Remove the laces from each row until you get to the set of eyelets that are just below the tongue loop.^{[2]
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- Make sure each side of your laces is roughly equal in length before proceeding. Sometimes, uneven laces lead to uneven pressure on the tongue, which can cause the tongue to slide to one side or another. If your laces are uneven, unlace your shoes all the way and relace them.
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3
Thread your shoelaces through the tongue loop. Slide each lace through the loop. Depending on how much room you have in the loop, you may need to slide one lace under the other so that they’re resting on top of one another. Pull the laces all the way through so there’s no unnecessary slack in your laces.^{[3]
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- Do not thread each lace through the eyelet on the opposite side. You’re actually going to break the lace pattern here.
4
Pull each shoelace through the eyelet on the same side. Lift each end of your shoelace up and pull it back to the eyelet on the same side that it started from. In other words, for the shoelace on the left side of the shoe, you slide it through the loop and then pull it back to the first open eyelet on the left side. Do this for each end of the shoelace.^{[4]
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5
Relace the remainder of the shoelace the same way you normally do. Resume your standard lacing pattern and continue re-lacing your shoes the same way they’re laced beneath the tongue loop. If you’re using the traditional crisscross method, keep alternating your laces on top of one another until you get up to the top eyelets.^{[5]
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- You can use any other pattern you’d like so long as the laces cross one another on their way up to the top of each shoe.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Other Solutions

1
Run the second-to-last row of laces behind the tongue. If you don’t have a tongue loop, unlace the top two rows of eyelets. Lift the tongue up a bit and relace your shoes by running the second-to-last row of laces behind the tongue, not on top of it. Then, relace the top row of eyelets on top of the tongue. This way, the tongue stays in place since the row of laces behind the tongue holds it up when your shoes are tied.^{[6]
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- This is an especially good option if you’ve got a pair of sneakers with a really large tongue that you’d like to show off.
2
Use the extra eyelets at the top to pin the tongue down. Undo the top row of your laces and slide each lace into the eyelet at the top on the same side of the shoe. Leave a little room to create a ¹⁄₂–1 in (1.3–2.5 cm) loop. Then, run each lace through the loop on the opposite side and pull tight before tying your shoes.^{[7]
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- This holds your tongue in place by pinning it down once your shoes are tied. It’s an especially good option if your heels tend to slide around in your shoes, which may be causing the tongue to slip to the side.
- Since the loop holds the laces in place at the top of the tongue, there won’t be a ton of friction pulling your tongue to one side or the other.
3
Relace your shoes entirely if the laces are uneven at the top. If one end of your shoelaces is longer than the other, undo your laces down to the bottom row. Then, adjust the length of each lace so that they’re identical before re-lacing your shoes.^{[8]
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- When the laces are uneven, there may be an asymmetrical amount of pressure on your tongue that causes it to loll.