Which flats have little to no heel counter?

if you're looking for racing flats, you may want to try either the saucony gridtype a4 (maybe they're a5s now?), or the more extreme saucony hattoris (i've used both of these flats for my quality trackwork and tempo runs. that said, my favorites to race in are still the asics piranhas, but they are fairly similar to the hyperspeeds...

Puma Faas 250. I had RB and now no probs.

Heel, Spot! wrote:

I'm nursing a case of retrocalcaneal bursitis. I've cut the heels out of a couple pairs of shoes but am looking for some flats that have soft heel cups. My fave shoe is the Asics Hyperspeed, but that destroys my heels. Help a brother out.

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Nike Zoom Streak 3's have no heel counter at all, but a good achilles pad, so it doesn't slip around on your foot at all. Not sure about the Streak 4. Same goes for the Streak XC series.

The Mizuno Ronin series do have a heel counter, but most have complained about how excessively wide the heel area (in the upper) is. It might give your heel bone the room it needs, if you need some sort of support via a heel counter. Otherwise, the Streaks are a good choice.

I can't wear shoes with a stiff heel counter due to a skin graft on the back of my heel(long story - running related!), so your question is one I constantly am on the lookout to answer.

I'm currently using NB 1010s and Saucony Kinvara TRs, and have had good luck with the Nike Streak XC 2/3/LT line.

Many of the "barefoot" running shoes have minimal counters, if you don't mind that type of soles.

Good luck!

Thanks, gang, these suggestions are helpful.

The following are completely pliable with no heel cup:

--New Balance Minimus Zero

--Skechers GoRuns

--Nike Frees

--Saucony Kinvaras

--Puma H Streets

--Someone had mentioned the Nike Lunar Montreals a few months ago, which appear to have been pulled.

--Puma 250s, which in my opinion are a terrible shoe cause the upper doesn't hold the foot in place, and the sole is slick.

--Brooks Racer STs have a soft heel counter

Kinvaras = low drop but reasonable midsole cushioning, virtually no heel counter.

Nike Lunar Montreal have no heel counter at all. Same midsole as the LunaRacer, better upper.

I'm not a fan of heel counters either so I sort of keep up on this.

The Mizuno Wave Universe has no heel counter. Neither do the Puma Faas 250s or most if not all of the New Balance Minimus series, though I'm not familiar with all of them. I know that the Road Minimus, I think it's the 00, has none and the trail equivalent to it also has none.

The Asics Piranha has a very, very, slight one and the Gel Lyte 33 has none.

options wrote:

--Puma 250s, which in my opinion are a terrible shoe cause the upper doesn't hold the foot in place, and the sole is slick.

Don't agree at all. Have three pairs and run in nothing else anymore.

I decided to give the Montreals a try. Thanks for the input.