A shoe can include support members for a plantar surface of a foot that include: (a) a heel support plate; (b) a forefoot support plate; (c) a heel securing strap component for securely engaging a heel supporting component with a wearer's heel; and (d) a unidirectional hinge, wherein the hinge allows the heel support plate to rotate internally with respect to the forefoot support plate and limit the heel support plate from rotating externally with respect to the forefoot support plate. The support member allows the shoe to twist and move with the foot, allowing the ankle to remain neutral, rather than the shoe fighting the foot's natural motion. The unidirectional nature of the hinge plate also prevents the shoe from rotating externally beyond a predetermined limit point.

A material that includes at least one layer made of an auxetic structure and articles of footwear having soles comprising the materials. When the material is under tension, it expands in both the direction under tension and in the directional orthogonal to the direction under tension. The articles of footwear have soles that have at least one layer made of a material that has a pattern of apertures to provide the auxetic structure. The apertures are surrounded by sole portions that can rotate or pivot to change the size of the apertures.

A sole structure for an article of footwear includes a plate, a plurality of cleats extending from the plate, and an auxetic structure disposed between the plurality of cleats. The auxetic structure is affixed to the plate such that an outer surface of the auxetic structure is positioned between a lower surface of the plate and a tip surface of at least one of the plurality of cleats.

A sole structure that includes recessed portions. The recessed portions are arranged such that the sole structure has auxetic properties. In some embodiments, sipes extend to the recessed portions. Additionally, the sole structure may include a central portion having auxetic properties and a peripheral portion

A shoe body comprises an outsole, a midsole, a vamp, a first girdle and a second girdle. A lower edge of the vamp extends from a periphery to a bottom surface of the midsole, and is connected between the midsole and the outsole. The first girdle has a bottom end formed with two fork pieces so that end portions of the fork pieces are fixed to a side edge of the midsole, and a top end going from one side of an arch portion of a foot bottom to a location above an instep. The second girdle has a bottom end fixed to the other side edge of the midsole, and a top end of the second girdle passing through the two fork pieces of the first girdle and then going from the other side of the arch portion of the foot bottom to a location above the instep.

Shoes and/or shoe elements facilitate natural foot motion and/or reduce forces tending to fight natural foot motion. In at least some such structures, a wearer's heel is secured to the hindfoot region of a shoe (e.g., by a strap system) in a manner that permits heel/forefoot rotation and that allows the lower leg to remain straight. In other structures, a shoe can include a heel supporting component that is separate from a midsole component, and this heel supporting component can move toward the lateral side and/or medial side of the shoe along an interface between the heel supporting component and the midsole component. Other suitable shoe and shoe component structures also are described.

An article of footwear has an auxetic sole structure formed from members surrounding apertures. The members may have a trapezoidal geometry. Adjoining members are hingedly connected, so that they can rotate with respect to each other in the plane of the sole structure. The rotation allows the auxetic sole structure to expand when tension is applied.

An article of footwear includes a sole structure with a midsole component and an inner sole component. The midsole component includes holes arranged in an auxetic configuration. The midsole component and the inner sole component may have a different density. The midsole component and the inner sole component may have a different compressibility.