Balance Bikes Help Young Children to Master the Essential Balance and Manoeuvring Skills in Cycling

For those with young children, knowing the benefits of balance bikes in aiding the learning process of bike riding will be quite useful. Also referred to as a run bike, the balance bike teaches young children to achieve balance and manage the counter steering skills and other balance maneuvering skills which are essential in learning to ride a real bike. This bike has no pedals, no crank sets and chains or training wheels. These bikes are available in both metal and wood form.  While some parents may feel this is a waste of money, the training which a runner bike gives to a toddler will make them be very confident in handling a peddling bike. The speedy progression from a runner bike to a peddling bike will be well worth the investment into one of these bikes that will cost around £ 50.00-75.00 depending on the design and the material.

Purpose and Usage Method of Balance Bikes

Before buying a balance bike for your child, you would wish to know how it is designed and the purpose it serves. Knowing how your child is supposed to use it is also important. The bike comes with no brakes or it may sometimes have hand activated brakes which are often not utilized by small children. The bike should be the right size for the child to stand firmly with the legs on either side of the bar.  The child will use their feet to shuffle along first and later on develop confidence to balance it by lifting their feet off the ground once they gain a momentum of movement by use of their feet to move or “walk the bike” forward or backwards. The saddle of the balance bikes should be comfortable and study to support the child well. As the child progress in mastering the skills of balancing, they will run or walk briskly for speedy momentum and then lift their feet off the ground to test their balance on two wheels.

Learning to Cycle without Training Wheels

As there is no support or guiding wheels on either side, the children learn to balance on two wheels on their own, gradually yet confidently. This helps them not to rely on balancing wheels which are not in fact a part of a normal two wheel bike. By learning to bike with guiding wheels, children sometimes learn bad or wrong cycling habits which they have to unlearn again, once the training wheels are removed. Counter steering is one of the main areas in which children learn wrong manoeuvring movements such as turning handle bar to the wrong side. Proper leaning of the bike and braking are other areas which the training wheel can affect negatively in the child’s learning process of cycling a two wheel peddling bike. 

With the benefits associated with a balance bike, parents of children as young as 18 months are confidently providing the opportunity for their children to learn cycling at an early age. With the help of balance bikes, the children develop confidence in their own manoeuvring and balancing skills than learning to rely on training wheels.

Author

This article is contributed by Eugiene Wilkins of the Balance Bike Shop.Com, the web’s best source for buying your balance bikes. We offer beautifully crafted balance bikes and rockers for your child in lightweight wood finish. You can browse through product details and find out why a balance bike choice should be made. Visit the product guide page for videos and details instructions on how to assemble and use the balance bikes so that your child can reap the best benefits.