What is the Loop on the Tongue of a Converse Used for?

“What is the loop on the tongue of a converse for?” Have you ever wondered? Perhaps. Many others have too.

The usefulness of the loop on the shoe tongue is multifaceted. But its primary use is for holding the shoe tongue in a fixed position, in a way that makes the tongue not slide during use and cause uneasiness.

Another primary use is for lacing your shoe. This way, different lacing styles are discovered. The pattern of shoe lacing where the loop is used has proven to offer more advantages than the traditional way of lacing shoes.

Here is a list of things the loop on the Converse tongue is used for:

• To accommodate feet of people with larger Talus
• The loop is used for personalizing lacing patterns
• The loop is used for firm grip
• The loop is used to stop the shoe tongue from sliding side to side

To accommodate feet of people with larger Talus

People with larger Talus often have problems with the part of the shoe where the tongue sits.

This is because, when the shoe is laced even as supposed, the Talus becomes uncomfortable and tends to push the tongue upward to create space.

People with larger Talus have tried to solve this problem by merely skipping a lace hole, but they end up creating another problem as they end up paving way for the tongue to slide sideways with much ease to cause another discomfort.

But that problem ceases to exist when a lace hole is skipped and the lace is allowed to pass through the loop and cross back as in the picture below.

The loop is used for personalizing lacing patterns

Have you ever thought of personalizing your lacing patterns? Yes, you can actually use the loop on the shoe’s tongue.

And this is not for guiding the tongue from slides, but for fashion and style where you make a unique lacing pattern peculiar to you using the loop. There are a plethora of styles you could choose from.

I own a crazy amount of converse, I have long lost count even. Though I have got a large spectrum of lacing styles, I still discover more daily using the tongue loop to explore, and I’m amazed that many people are yet to find out how many styles are embedded in the exploration of the shoe tongue loop.

The loop is used for firm grip

Apart from making sure that the tongue gets fixated, it also helps to cause a kind of all-round grip of the shoe to your feet.

The reason for this is, as the laces pass through the loop and back to the lace holes, and as the pattern gets repeated a few times as should, the tongue gets an elevated connection with the shoes, and the shoe connects more with your foot.

This is how the general balance and bonding between your shoe and your feet heightens up. I use the loop often, especially when I begin to feel some slack around my converse, and it has been helpful.

The loop is used to stop the shoe tongue from sliding from side to side

Well, there are a few other methods that have been found to be useful recently for controlling the movement of the shoe tongue from sliding. But none have really sufficed greatly like that of using the loop on the shoe tongue.

The importance of the loops on a shoe tongue cannot be overemphasized. Whoever has had the tasking chore of having to constantly fix the tongue of his/her shoe and have it slide back to one side just almost immediately after having it “fixed” knows exactly how vexatious this could be.

I hate it, I believe you do too.

But how this loop on the shoe’s tongue helps to tackle this cause with so much ease is one magical relief that one should be grateful for.

How you do this is; pass the lace through the loop and lace the shoe as you normally do on both sides. Ensure your lacing pattern is the X style where the lace is made to pass through the loop multiple times as in the picture below.

Here is why the loop on the tongue of a shoe is important

The loop is important as you can thread your shoelace through it. You do this by sliding each shoelace through the loop.

Although it depends on how large the room is on the tongue loop. In some cases, you will have to slide one lace under another in a pattern that will have them rest on one another.

Using the loop to lace helps to pull most components of the shoe together so that there is no room given to unnecessary slack therein.

I have noticed that most shoe manufacturers have recognized the importance of the tongue loop to have designed most shoes with them. it has become common.

However, some shoes instead feature a set of slits that lays vertically, ones that you can cut in place of a fabric loop, inasmuch as they are cool too, they do not suffice quite as much as the loops.

And it goes pretty well with many patterns of lacing, but they have limited lacing applications, like the parallel bars.

Using the tongue loop to lace, use your normal bow knot to tie them twice first and pass them through the loop.

Proceed to tie the knot for a second time, this way, the loop will make sure there’s no possibility of its coming undone.

There is this confidence you begin to walk with. You know, there is a difference between how you feel walking with a shoe that could get unbalanced in the next minute and having one that has you covered in assurance.

The former puts your mind in a state of unrest while the latter allows you to enjoy your foot ride without paying unnecessary attention to what may go wrong in the next minute, this way, the maximization of comfort is enhanced and the extent of user experience is elevated.

All thanks to the loop on your shoe tongue.

What was the loop at the back of the shoe originally meant for?

• For better fit
• For laundry
• For inducement of the laces
• Reflective material to help sportsmen
  
• For holding timing chips

For better fit

It could be very tasking and difficult sometimes when trying to put the shoe On, especially as your fingers may not get a firm grasp of the collar of your shoe.

But the loop at the back of your sneakers saves you the stress as you could just use your fingers to pull it up. This way, there will be a reduced possibility of stain during the process of wearing your shoe.

For laundry

The loops at the back of your shoes help in no small way during laundry as they can be used to hang the shoes during the drying process. Some shoe owners have gone as far as having their shoes sewn by these loops of clothes.

This helps to keep each pair together so they are not all mixed with the rest of the shoes. By doing so, identification of the shoes is made easy. No one wants to be saddled with the responsibility of having to locate the right shoe pairs and merge them.

For inducement of the laces

Professional players have always had the need of having their shoes gripped to their legs as healthy as possible.

So, what they do is to pass the shoelace through the loop and repeat the process from both sides of the lace, then fasten it to their ankles for a firm grip and for the prevention of having the laces stuck inside of the instep to cause discomfort.

Reflective material helps sportsmen

If you are observant enough, you would have noticed that the loops at the back of shoes are made of reflective materials that help in the enhancement of the safety of those that are night sportspeople, such as going for a run.

For holding timing chips

Professional sportswear analysts have said that the initial intent of having the loop at the back of a shoe is for holding timing chips for the measurements of the wearer’s speed. They revealed that other uses of the loop that came thereafter are secondary.

Nonetheless, other uses of the loop that sprung up on the long run have been cool and helpful as well. So whether or not those were their intended use, they have helped better users’ experiences in no small way.

Conclusion

The stress that comes with having your shoe tongue constantly shifting from side to side is pretty annoying.

That is why this article has been written on that foundation of proven tests to help you eliminate that hurdle and reveal other uses of tongue loops.

“What is the loop on the tongue of a converse for?” has been answered and recommendations have been given from research and the feedback of testers, such that the article was written from a place of good enough knowledge to have encapsulated all there is to know about the said loop. I am certain this will help you.

Related articles:

• Why are Converse so uncomfortable at first
• Can You Use Converse As Running Shoes
• Can You Wear Converse With Joggers
• Can Nurses Wear Converse Sneakers
• Why Does The Tongue Of My Converse Move