How to Tie Ice Skates

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Tying ice skates correctly is important for being able to support the ankle in the skates as well as making sure the energy and motion your body puts into skating is directed toward the blade and the ice and not lost within the boot. Take the time to tie your skates correctly to improve your performance and keep your ankles snug.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Tightening Your Laces

1
Position yourself to lace your skate. Seated in a chair, with your skate on a mat, press your foot firmly into a loosened skate. Take hold of both laces, one in each hand, and extend your leg enough so that you can rest your weight on the heel of the boot with your toes pointed slightly upward.
2
Tighten the laced portion of the boot. Loop your first two fingers through the lace at next to the hole one either side. Grab the laces firmly. Push down with the ball of your foot while pulling up on the laces.
- Start with the laces closest to the toe of the boot.
- You should be able to fit your finger between the lace and the boot once it is tightened.
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3
Take up the slack. Once you reach the middle of the boot, the slack in the lace may start pulling the loose ends of the laces out of the holes in the top of the boot. Move to the top laced hole of the boot and pull the laces through from there to keep the top of the laces from being pulled out of the holes.
- Once you have taken up the slack, return to tightening the boot until your reach the top.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Lacing the Ankle

1
Lace the remaining top portion of the boot. The top few holes of the boot are likely not laced at this point. Once you have tightened the laces up to this section, follow the same pattern as the rest of the laces to complete lacing the boot to the top. Cross one lace over the other and through the hole on the other side.
2
Loop around the hooks. Some skates have hooks at the top. Cross the laces as you would if you were lacing through holes, then draw the laces either from the top of the hooks down, or the bottom of the hooks up. Either direction will work. From there, draw the laces together in front of the skate to begin your knot.
3
Tighten around the ankle with a lacing trick. If you do not have hooks at the top of your skates and would like to make the ankle even more snug, try this trick. Instead of crossing your laces to the the top holes, take the laces directly up to the next hole on the same side. Feed the lace from the outside in through the top hole, creating a loop on each side. Now cross the laces and put them through the loops you just created on the opposite sides and pull to tighten. The space and leverage created by the loops will allow you to pull the laces tighter.^{[1]
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Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Tying the Knot

1
Cross the laces twice. Just like you would tie a shoe, cross one lace over the other and wrap it under and back out to the side. This time, though, repeat that process a second time before pulling the laces to the side tighten the knot.
- Crossing the laces twice will lock the knot in place and keep it from sliding even if the bow comes undone.
2
Tighten the knot. Pull up on the laces while rocking the toes of your skate forward. This will create a space between your crossed laces and the top of the skate. Pull the laces firmly to the side to get rid of the space, so the crossed lace are lying directly across the top of the skate.
- Repeat this move several times until you cannot create the space under the crossed laces.
3
Take care of excess laces. You don't want to have any laces touching the ice or loops in your bow which are too big. These could cause the lace to end up between the skate and the ice and cause a tripping hazard. Wrap the remainder of the laces around the boot. Take the laces around the back of the top of the boot and pull them back to the front. Do this as many times as necessary until you are left with only enough length to tie a double knot and bow in the laces.^{[2]
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- If you don't have too much excess lace, you can also tie a double bow to take care of the extra lace.
4
Tie a bow in the last of the laces. Like tying a shoe, make a loop in one lace, then loop the other under and over the loop. This time, repeat this looping process to create a double loop for your knot. Finish the bow by pulling that lace through the two loops to create the other loop of the bow.^{[3]
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Community Q&A

Question

What if I don't have microfiber socks because I don't normally skate so I don't buy them? Will thicker cotton socks work fine?

Community Answer

Although your feet may be warmer to begin, cotton socks will tend to absorb moisture more and will rapidly make your feet cold, which could cause discomfort while skating. However, if this is all you have it is better than going without socks, which is not recommended.
Question

How do I know if my skates are tight enough?

Community Answer

You can understand this while skating. If you feel that your feet are able to move independently from your skates, it means that they need to be tightened. Your skates must become one with your legs, like a part of your body. Only then, you'll be able to feel the ice correctly.
Question

Why not just purchase correct size laces?

Community Answer

Ice skate laces are different than normal shoelaces, and generally come in fewer sizes. You also don't have any such option if you're renting your skates, so it's best to know how to fix up the excess - just in case.

Warnings

Be careful whilst on the ice that your lace does not come untied. If it does, skate to the nearest edge, hold onto the side, and tuck in your lace. Then skate to the nearest exit and come off the ice to tie your skate.

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Helpful 22 Not Helpful 4
Do not pull your laces too hard. They can snap.

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