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If you are a mom or dad with a young child and you are an avid jogger, inline skater or power walker (or want to be) and you want to be outdoors and stay fit with your baby you can still do it. More and more families are considering a baby jogging stroller. Times have changed – baby strollers used to be for gentle walks in the park. Not anymore – baby jogging strollers are here to stay – helping moms and dads stay fit and get fit. There are lots of strollers to choose from – so it is not easy to decide. Here are 10 things that will help you to decide which one is best for you.

1. Choose an aluminum framed stroller. Your choices will be strollers made with either metal tube frames or aluminum frames. You want your stroller to weigh less than 25 pounds. Metal tube frame strollers are much heavier than those made with an aluminum frame. Choosing an aluminum frame provides you with a lighter, easier to push stroller, and they are also longer lasting, stronger and more resistant to rust and corrosion.

2. Stroller wheels. The stroller you choose should have air-filled 16 inch wheels since they provide easy pushing for mom or dad, and they provide your baby with a comfortably smooth ride. Traditional jogging strollers have two back wheels and one front wheel. The goal with a jogging stroller is to reduce rolling resistance, and any wheels that are less than 16 inches in diameter just don`t do the trick.

3. Baby should be as comfortable as possible. The more comfortable baby is during the run the more enjoyable the time will be for everyone. The fabric in the stroller seat should allow for good air flow to help keep baby cool, and it should be made from a light material that will help reduce the baby getting too warm especially on hot days. You also want the seat to lay back (at least 25%) so that the baby can be comfortable if they decide to nap during the run.

4. Protect your baby from the sun. Any jogging stroller that you consider will have a sun canopy. You want to make sure that the sun canopy is fully flexible so that it can be positioned to block out the sun`s rays so that no matter which way your baby is facing they are protected. You should not have to clip a blanket to the stroller for protection. The last thing you want is direct sun into your son or daughter`s face causing potential harm to them, and making the baby uncomfortable which will eventually lead to crying and fussing.

5. Child safety. Safety is number 1 whenever it comes to your baby. Make sure that the stroller you choose keeps your baby safely strapped into their seat. Look for a stroller with a five-point harness. The stroller should have both a hand brake, and a parking brake (engaged by flipping a bar with your feet).

6. Fits in trunk of car. The process for folding should be simple. Many strollers have a trigger on each side of the handlebar that allow the stroller to easily fold into itself. Most car trunks can hold a folded stroller if it is smaller than 25 x 45 x 18 (inches). In order to fold it into a smaller dimension find a stroller that has one-touch pop-off wheels that are easy to remove for storage.

7. If people of different heights will be jogging with the stroller make sure that the handlebar height is adjustable. If you or your partner both plan on using the stroller and if one of you is noticably taller than the other you want to be sure that the stroller handlebars adjust in height so that you will both be comfortable when using the stroller. Strollers with this feature will have a button in the handlebar making this adjustment easy – even on the fly.

8. Make sure that it works for your baby as they grow. Babies come in all sizes and shapes – isn`t that great. Your stroller is an investment – and you want to get as much use from it as possible. A child that measures under 25 in. when seated should be able to sit in the stroller, and a child eighty pounds or less should be safely be able to use the stroller. Look for a stroller that provides good height and weight capacity.

9. Buy with confidence. If you bring the stroller home and try it out and it just isn`t what you expected it to be, make sure that the retailer will provide a full refund without any arguing. And if there are problems down the road make sure that there is a good long term warranty from the manufacturer. A solid manufacturer`s warranty is 5 years on the frame and 1 year on all other parts of the stroller.

10. They cost as little as $280 and can be over $1,000. Don`t overpay, and don`t pay for the branding of the stroller. List the features and benefits that are most important to you. Keep in mind that the purchase will provide many years of benefits to you and your family. Then look for the least expensive stroller that meets those features and benefits. In all likelihood you can purchase one for $280 or slightly higher.

Use this list of ten things to do to list which stroller features are most important to your family. Then use your list to help you to purchase the stroller that best meets your needs.

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 14th, 2008 at 1:14 pm and is filed under Parenting Articles.You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.