Why Are Balance Bikes Ideal For Teaching Kids To Ride?

Not so long ago, the most common way to teach children to ride a bike was with a small bicycle fitted with a pair of training wheels. These training wheels would hold the bike upright so that the child could learn how to pedal and steer.

Cycling with training wheels is fun, and it no doubt helps kids to learn to ride. After all, most adults learned in this way. But what if there were an easier way to teach kids to cycle? Well, there is.According to the folk at Woom it comes in the form of the balance bike. But what is a balance bike,and why is it ideal when it comes to teaching kids to cycle?

What Is A Balance Bike?

A balance bike is different to a regular training bike in that it does not have any training wheels. Nor does it have pedals or a chain for that matter. It has a frame with handlebars, two wheels, and a saddle,but it may or may not have brakes. And that’s it. It is designed so that the child sits on the saddle and holds on to the handlebars, moving the bike by pushing their feet off the ground to propel themself forwards. To stop the bike, they just need to put their feet on the ground.

How Do Balance Bikes Help Children To Learn To Cycle?

You might be wondering how a balance bike could teach a child to cycle when it doesn’t even come with pedals. Nevertheless, balance bikes actually make learning to ride a bike easier. These lightweight bikes do not have any of the moving parts that can get in the way of learning to ride, and they give the child the opportunity to quickly master the most difficult part of cycling – balance.

Balance bikes are ideal when it comes to teaching young children to cycle because they are available in small sizes. The smallest bike with training wheels is typically 12”, but smaller 10” balance bikes are often available, and theseoffer a much more comfortable fit. While most regular bikes with training wheels are not suitable for kids under the age of three, a balance bike is ideal for children as young as 18 months.

Do you remember learning to ride on your bike with training wheels? Riding over uneven surfaces was not much fun at all because the small wheels could get stuck and make it hard to move. And do you recall how much of a struggle it was to turn a bike with training wheels? Neither of these are issues for the balance bike. Children can easily move from the sidewalk to the grass or gravel track with no issues.

Balance bikes are also safer for youngerkids. They can only go as fast as the child can push, and because they are lightthere is less chance of your child getting injured or pinned down by a heavy bike should they fall off.

Learning to ride a balance bike helps your child to develop better balance, coordination, and strength and the move to a pedal bike becomes much easier.

Conclusion

A balance bike is the perfect tool when it comes to teaching children how to ride a bike. The lightweight design makes learning to balance fun and easy.Moreover, when it comes to moving on to a traditional pedal bike, the child simply needs to learn how to pedal. If you want to introduce a young child to cycling, a balance bike is definitely the way to go.