Skills Needed for Bike Riding
So let’s start with the skills. Below is a breakdown of some of the things required to bike ride:
Leg Strength: Pedaling and pushing a bike requires strength to push in a downward motion to move it forward.
Balance: It takes a lot of coordination to balance on the seat and maintain position while it is moving.
Core strength: Core muscles are vital to our participation in many movement activities and especially bike riding.
Bilateral coordination: This means that the child has to use both sides of their body at the same time. Bike riding requires this skill in being able to hold both handle bars and coordinate both legs to propel.
Visual motor skills: Some people also refer to these skills as hand-eye coordination. If you think about bike riding, we have to be able to look with our eyes and tell our body what to do. This helps a child decide whether they are going to keep going or stop or move side to side to avoid an obstacle.
Steps & Tips for Bike Riding
So now that we have the skills, let’s talk a little bit about some recommendations for progression. Often times, I do not recommend children starting with training wheels on their 2 wheeled bike. Especially with children who are developmentally delayed or having difficulty in any of the above skills, they may use the training wheels as a crutch for their skills. This is not true for every child, so it is something to consider for what fits best for your child.
STEP 1: Modify the Bike
PEDALS: When a child first gets a two wheel bike, I recommend removing the pedals. Removing the pedals?? Yes! When you remove the pedals, it allows your child to get used to balancing on the seat and propelling the bike forward. If you have ever seen a balance bike, this is the same concept without having to get another bike. Without the pedals, a child can work on coordinating where to put their hands, pushing with their feet, and looking at where they are going. Make sure you child can first try in a straight path and then can work on steering a little later.
SEAT: When you remove the pedals, the next step is to lower the seat. You want the seat to be low enough so that they can propel through pushing with the ball of their foot.
Tip: You do not want your child to be able to push all the way through their heel because they may rely on that more for balance than using their core muscles.
STEP 2: Add One Pedal
So your child has mastered balancing and riding the bike without pedals. They can steer, propel it forward, and can feel the wind across their face! Next it is time to add on one pedal. You can choose which ever side would work best for your child. If they are five years or older and have hand dominance, I would recommend putting the pedal on their preferred side first. So this may seem kind of silly and that is okay! Putting one pedal on allows your child to master the motor movement on one side rather than having to coordinate both sides together. They can also still use their other leg to help catch them from falling. Once they have mastered pedaling with one side, take that pedal off and put the one on the other side. Repeat the process until they are able to coordinate and propel the bike forward.
Tip: You do not want to switch your child’s pedal until they have mastered it on the one side. The length of time to master this skill varies for each child and is discovered by them practicing on the bike.
STEP 3: Add The Second Pedal
It is time for two pedals!! At this point your child has learned all of the small skills required for pedaling with two pedals. When you place the two pedals on, they will learn the new balance of having two legs off the ground and watch them go!
Bike riding is one of my favorite summer time activities and I hope that this has helped to provide a way to support your child in bike riding this year! If you have any questions or concerns about your child and development please reach out to an occupational therapist at TheraTree. You can reach us by phone at 270-688-8449 or email at contact@theratreepeds.com.