Learning how to ride a bike
I thought teaching to ride a bike (without training wheels) to my second daughter was going to be tough, very though. I was originally thinking in sending her to summer camp to learn the skill, however, with COVID-19 that became a no option
It took her 2 days on a weekend with very minimal parent intervention to learn the skill, most of the learning process was based on my first daughter that did it in 1-2 hours … although she had an advantage which was she used a lot a balancing bike when younger, but she did show me the how to do it easy and fast
When I grew up my parents would remove one wheel first, which in my opinion is a waste of time as it serves no purpose other than teach you to balance to the training wheel side. Then they will spend one or two days running behind the bike holding it while I would pedal like crazy, letting go over short periods of time until ready. Although, this worked it takes too much more time and parent effort as I believe is needed
The following technique is what worked really well for both daughters and I think it will work perfectly well for an adult as well
1. Preparation
a. Make sure the seat is lower than usual so it is comfortable to stand on the bike when not moving
For my daughter just being able to hold the feet without tip toeing was enough
b. Make sure you have padding and helmet as needed
This will reduce the anxiety about falling and in the event of one it will limit the negative impact it will further have through the training
2. Balance
Find a small slope and explain to the student to take a small impulse on the bike and try to hold balance on the bike (without touching the pedals with the feet), just leave the feet to stop or hold balance as needed
Let the student go over this training until able to hold balance
3. Pedaling
After confidence is build and balance is present then introduce pedaling, at the student discretion, but making sure the pedaling starts at the end of the slope (when enough momentum has been build)
Let the student go over this training until able to pedal down the slope
4. Profit
The last part is about starting on a plain from a static position, at this point it is about the position of the pedaling (usually at 2 o'clock) and starting from there by creating momentum
Final thoughts
The beauty of this approach is that it let the student build enough confidence, with minimal intervention from the teacher, and each student can go at their own pace. Parents only need to coach/guide and encourage through the process
It took her 2 days on a weekend with very minimal parent intervention to learn the skill, most of the learning process was based on my first daughter that did it in 1-2 hours … although she had an advantage which was she used a lot a balancing bike when younger, but she did show me the how to do it easy and fast
When I grew up my parents would remove one wheel first, which in my opinion is a waste of time as it serves no purpose other than teach you to balance to the training wheel side. Then they will spend one or two days running behind the bike holding it while I would pedal like crazy, letting go over short periods of time until ready. Although, this worked it takes too much more time and parent effort as I believe is needed
The following technique is what worked really well for both daughters and I think it will work perfectly well for an adult as well
1. Preparation
a. Make sure the seat is lower than usual so it is comfortable to stand on the bike when not moving
For my daughter just being able to hold the feet without tip toeing was enough
b. Make sure you have padding and helmet as needed
This will reduce the anxiety about falling and in the event of one it will limit the negative impact it will further have through the training
2. Balance
Find a small slope and explain to the student to take a small impulse on the bike and try to hold balance on the bike (without touching the pedals with the feet), just leave the feet to stop or hold balance as needed
Let the student go over this training until able to hold balance
3. Pedaling
After confidence is build and balance is present then introduce pedaling, at the student discretion, but making sure the pedaling starts at the end of the slope (when enough momentum has been build)
Let the student go over this training until able to pedal down the slope
4. Profit
The last part is about starting on a plain from a static position, at this point it is about the position of the pedaling (usually at 2 o'clock) and starting from there by creating momentum
Final thoughts
The beauty of this approach is that it let the student build enough confidence, with minimal intervention from the teacher, and each student can go at their own pace. Parents only need to coach/guide and encourage through the process
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