A shoe includes a shoe upper and a sole coupled to the shoe upper and that includes a lower surface comprising a first material. A heel insert is embedded in a heel portion of the sole and includes a second material having a coefficient of friction less than a coefficient of friction of the first material, such as less than half. The heel insert may include projections made of a low-friction material such as nylon or UHMW whereas the sole is made from rubber. The projections may be embedded in a frame that seats within an inverted U-shaped channel defined by the sole.

A shoe includes a shoe upper and a sole coupled to the shoe upper and that includes a lower surface comprising a first material. A heel insert is embedded in a heel portion of the sole and includes a second material having a coefficient of friction less than a coefficient of friction of the first material, such as less than half. The heel insert may include projections made of a low-friction material such as nylon or UHMW whereas the sole is made from rubber. The projections may be embedded in a frame that seats within an inverted U-shaped channel defined by the sole.

A shoe includes a sole unit, an upper unit, a sockliner unit, a heel counter and an adhesive layer. The sole unit includes a sole heel sidewall. The upper unit has an access opening edge and an upper heel portion that abuts against the sole heel sidewall. The sockliner unit has a sockliner heel portion that corresponds to the upper heel portion. The heel counter is resiliently deformable and includes a resilient heel plate. The resilient heel plate has a pressing portion and two wing portions. The pressing portion has a pressing body top edge that is adjacent to the access opening edge, and a pressing body bottom edge that is adjacent to the sole unit. The pressing body bottom edge is lower than a top edge of the sole heel sidewall along a height direction.

A shoe includes a sole unit, an upper unit, a sockliner unit, a heel counter and an adhesive layer. The sole unit includes a sole heel sidewall. The upper unit has an access opening edge and an upper heel portion that abuts against the sole heel sidewall. The sockliner unit has a sockliner heel portion that corresponds to the upper heel portion. The heel counter is resiliently deformable and includes a resilient heel plate. The resilient heel plate has a pressing portion and two wing portions. The pressing portion has a pressing body top edge that is adjacent to the access opening edge, and a pressing body bottom edge that is adjacent to the sole unit. The pressing body bottom edge is lower than a top edge of the sole heel sidewall along a height direction.

A shoe includes a sole unit, an upper unit, a sockliner unit, a heel counter and an adhesive layer. The sole unit includes a sole heel sidewall. The upper unit has an access opening edge and an upper heel portion that abuts against the sole heel sidewall. The sockliner unit has a sockliner heel portion that corresponds to the upper heel portion. The heel counter is resiliently deformable and includes a resilient heel plate. The resilient heel plate has a pressing portion and two wing portions. The pressing portion has a pressing body top edge that is adjacent to the access opening edge, and a pressing body bottom edge that is adjacent to the sole unit. The pressing body bottom edge is lower than a top edge of the sole heel sidewall along a height direction.

A shoe includes a sole unit, an upper unit, a sockliner unit, a heel counter and an adhesive layer. The sole unit includes a sole heel sidewall. The upper unit has an access opening edge and an upper heel portion that abuts against the sole heel sidewall. The sockliner unit has a sockliner heel portion that corresponds to the upper heel portion. The heel counter is resiliently deformable and includes a resilient heel plate. The resilient heel plate has a pressing portion and two wing portions. The pressing portion has a pressing body top edge that is adjacent to the access opening edge, and a pressing body bottom edge that is adjacent to the sole unit. The pressing body bottom edge is lower than a top edge of the sole heel sidewall along a height direction.