idiom for proceeding slowly and with difficulty

Question

Is there an idiom I could use if I wanted to say that someone is doing something with a lot difficulty and slowly?

I cannot think of anything. Thanks

Edit from comment:

For example: You have learnt a lot of things and you will sail through the exams. Your lazy friends on the contrary will slog their way through it.

Is there an expression I can use instead of slog to convey a similar meaning?

Answer 1

Wading through treacle gets several hits on line

If the effort is doomed to failure it can be described as a Sisyphean task

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Merriam Webster Definition of SISYPHEAN : of, relating to, or suggestive of the labors of Sisyphus

SISYPHUS : a legendary king of Corinth condemned eternally to repeatedly roll a heavy rock up a hill in Hades only to have it roll down again as it nears the top

Answer 2

Another idea is "swimming through porridge"

Answer 3

I'd suggest, flounder/wade through (something)

flounder through

Fig. to struggle awkwardly through a difficult situation.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs

I floundered through the test because I never studied.

Quizlet

Answer 4

drudging through the work? that's properly idiomatic but it sounds kind of demeaning, as in speaking assertively, rather than in terms intended to teach as idioms do. But this phrasing certainly fits the definition as dictionary.com defines it.