NOW CLOSED: Talk to Central YMCA about the best buggies for exercising with....you could win a £100 John Lewis voucher.

[AnnMumsnet]

We've been asked by the team at Central YMCA to find out your best buggy for exercising with.

So if you are you a regular buggy exerciser please share on this thread the buggy you would recommend for mums looking to power walk, jog or generally push themselves fit while out and about with their baby?

Please say why you'd recommend it - what makes it good and why you chose it over others.

Please also state what age your baby/ child was in the buggy, any bad points and your overall opinion of the value for money you've had from the buggy.

Please post your responses below - the responses on this thread will be used by CYMCA in an exciting new free digital product for mums from Central YMCA. If they want to use your direct quote we may well be in touch with you to find out your name and location so this can be attributed to you - eg "xxx" said Jane from Bolton.

Everyone who adds their recommendation to this thread will be entered into a prize draw where one winner would get a £100 John Lewis voucher.

Thanks, MNHQ

[scarlettsmummy2]

I have a Hauck viper- good low cost three wheeler. Three big wheels are brilliant on rough ground- including the beach! Light to push and manoeuvres brilliantly! I mostly use it for my wee baby, but it takes my tall three year old with ease too!

[turnipvontrapp]

Urban detour - brilliant, £35 off eBay! Off-road, up hills, parks -it's fab. Not needed now my baby starts school soon

[Maffy]

I love the Out n About Nipper. I use it cross country across fields and it is easy to cover the country across all but the muddiest plough. It folds down quickly and compactly to fit in all cars I have tried.

I have both the single and double versions to cope with you 2yo DS and 3mo DD. The are surprisingly inexpactive pushchairs so I can justify both!

[buggyRunner]

Nipper here too- have done 10ks with it. Second the wrist strap.
Please also ensure your pram is suitable for running and has a locked swivel wheel- dd1 was flipped because if this she was fine and more concerned about her doll (as we were trying out a double baby weaver) but it was horrible and dp got hurt

[frizzyhaired]

I had the out about nipper double and it was fabulous. Was comfortable for the twins to go for ages and was comfortable and easy for me to manoeuvre over long distances and off road trails. Did a few buggyfit classes and it has excellent stability. I never had to change or swap it even with all the rough use.
I loved it. Have just sold it on eBay after 4 1/2 years and we all wept to see it go.

[AgnesG]

I am keen runner and did quite a bit of research before I bought anything. In the end I went for the Baby Jogger Performance (the one with 20" wheels) and I found it more than lives up to the promise. Apparently Paula Radcliffe uses one, say no more.
It scores really highly on safety (wrist-strap, easy access brakes and a snug 5-point harness), ease of use (it's more of a guiding action as you run along it takes very little effort to push it), manoeuverability over pavements, round corners and over rough-ish trails, and comfort for the baby (a nice sunshade, they sit high up and look really secure & cosy!). It's certainly pricey - and not at all suitable for taking around Tescos on the weekly shop! - but for me it was worth the money and I was able to easily resell it at a good price on Gumtree. AND I managed a 3:39 marathon PB when my baby was only 8 months so it must have been doing something right... :)

[Elkieb]

My loola up is great for pushing over most terrain except sand- found this out the hard way! I like the adjustable suspension which you can make harder for off road stuff.

[rhetorician]

it probably is worth saying that the re-sale value on the baby joggers that are specifically designed for running is very good - they hold their value which was a factor. The Summit is a bit cheaper - and I think is about to be replaced by a different model.

[Elkieb]

Forgot to add that my DS is 5 months old, and I feel that the pram is very good value for money.

[mistlethrush]

Moutain Buggy Urban - fantastic - has locking wheel but only needed to do this when going over eg fallen down stone walls - rest of the time the moving wheel meant that you could normally push it with one finger. It went through foot high grass (which could get caught up in axles but didn't), foot deep mud and water (regular morning walk with dog) and was used from when DS was 3wks up until he stopped using it (26 months) and moved on to a balance bike instead. Never strapped a car seat onto it and didn't have the cot attachment - simply dressed ds appropriately and he was fine. Good shade attachment was really helpful - got the shadeababe. And yes, wrist strap very important - a disc brake would have been clogged up on regular occasions with what we went through but a wrist strap doesn't have that problem. It was also surprisingly manoeuvrable in shops and would turn on a penny.

[If anyone's looking for a pre-loved mb pm me!]

[StellaAndFries]

We had a mountain buggy terrain double when dd4 was a newborn and dd3 was 13 months old and it was brilliant for walking, jogging etc. It was sturdy, easy to manoeuvre and didn't tip and felt solid when pushing on rough terrain.

My phil and teds sports double was also well used once they were both a bit bigger, that was very easy to manoeuvre and felt lightweight for a double.

[Blatherskite]

I love my Phil & Teds Sport. I've done buggyfit with it, a few runs and it easily came up and down the cliff paths at Scarborough with us just last week.

The three huge wheels make it really easy to push over any terrain and way the seat sways slightly when in full laid back mode means that baby is rocked to sleep as you exercise. It's got a good, wide handle which makes it easy to push even with one hand and even when loaded up with 2 children in doubles mode. It's also narrow enough to get through most gates and down narrow cliff paths which works well in shops too. You can buy hang bags and cup holders to make taking a drink with you easy and the storage underneath is huge so long as it's in singles mode. They're so sturdy that they last forever so you can pick on up, usually with all the accompanying bits, fairly cheap from ebay etc

The only down side for me was that you can occasionally get a flat as the tyres are pneumatic - although I wouldn't change this as I think it makes for a more comfortable ride - and that the covers don't come off for cleaning. I did find washable covers for the front bumper bar, handle and footrest though which have kept mine much cleaner.

[thecinnamongiraffe]

I have the predecessor to the current baby jogger performance, it is as light as a feather and fantastic for running. It has 16' bike type wheels so even on the flat it would keep on going with out you so the wrist strap is definitely a must. It is great but has been in storage for a while it is only a single (I have seen the double version on e-bay but it is about as wide as a small car). It will be dusted off soon when DC2 goes to nursery and DC3 will ride in it. It has quite a large seat though, I should think my nearly five year old would be quite comfortable in it, I remember when she first went in it at 6 months old she looked a bit lost.

I have tried the phil and ted sport but found it a bit to heavy for running, probably because I was spoilt by the Baby Jogger. With both seats loaded I didn't have room to stride out so I didn't enjoy power walking with it much.

The Nipper 360 double is awesome, there are not too many places around here where I could run for long without having to stop and negotiate narrow gaps/roads etc but I have given it a quick go and it runs well (again, it would keep going without you even on a flat surface).

Nice and cheap but really good for a power walk was actually my second hand Maclaren Techo XT, the adjustable handles in the XT means that you can get a bit further away from the buggy and stride out, not by any means on a par with the Baby Jogger performance but pretty good when I wanted to power walk home via Tescos.

[egdeh]

I have an out and about nipper, well 2 as have twin and single versions. Both stood up to some serious punishment, are a dream to push and will go almost anywhere. But raincovers tend to rip and hood provides little shade, esp on double. For price, hard to beat though.

[MegBusset]

For about 18 months I had DS2 (6mo to 2y) in a Maclaren Techno and DS1 (2.6y to 4y) on a buggy board (combined weight probably about 4 stone!). I walked everywhere and lived up the top of a steep slope. I had arms, thighs and buns of absolute steel

I seem to recall the Bugaboo Gecko I had when DS1 was a baby was very smooth and easy to push. Good value too as I sold it on eBay for almost retail price. The Phil & Teds double I had until DS2 was 6mo was a bugger to get round corners and up and down kerbs, I sold it on eBay for more than it cost new so definitely good value!

[appu123]

Hello friends, I am looking a good prem for my 3 years old baby boy....please suggest me....it should not too much costly.
thanks...xx

[welliesandpyjamas]

I've tried a few pushchairs to do the 4 miles fast walk of school run (which I would like to think constitutes a decent amount of exercise combined with a good use of time). Anything with small and/or solid wheels are hard work pushing and dealing with very uneven pavements. Anything oldish and/or heavy is also hard work. The best combination of everything I've needed for all the walking is the Mutsy 4rider Light - it has more bouncy (but not air filled puncture prone) wheels, comfy handle, the seat suits larger toddlers too, it has lovely amooth movement and turning, and as a handy extra benefit the shopping basket (the larger one, bought separately) is enough to get an awful lot of groceries in it, as well as school bags and coats. I've even devised a way of strapping my son's scooter on to it with a bungee cord without it getting in the way of my legs.

[BettyandDon]

Goodness I do not think any buggies except the ridiculously expensive jogging buggies (way out of my budget) are suitable for exercise. Is it not something to do with the baby needing high suspension and support when being jostled about. Walking is fine with any buggy but I don't see that it could be a USP for any other type of buggy except a specially designed jogging one. I do not even know of any brand names that do this as we chose our buggy based on small size and price and also I don't jog!

[AngelDog]

I've a Teutonia Spirit S3 - a bit like a Mountain Buggy, but does rear facing as well as forward. Light, manoevrable 3-wheeler with locking front swivel wheel for rough terrain. Foam air-filled tyres so no punctures. I do all my shopping (including groceries) with it, and my 2.5 y.o. - and we live in a very hilly area. DH runs with it occasionally, and DS loves it. :) It's good on rough terrain too.

IMO anything with small, solid, not-properly-swivelling wheels is a disaster.

[peggyblackett]

I have two different buggies for exercising, both of which are brilliant.

I've the Baby Jogger Performance Classic for running (I'm starting to train for a half marathon). It has really good shock absorbable, BIG wheels for speed and is incredibly light. It's the Runners World mags editors choice, and also apparently Paula Radcliffe's buggy of choice postnatally. The only downside is that you'd struggle to get it into a lot of small car boots. Oh, and the fact that your dc needs to be 6 months before you can use it safely.

For long cross country walks its another vote for the Mountain Buggy. I bought my first Urban 8 years ago and it's still going strong. I now have the double for my two youngest and it's brilliant. It can get over pretty much anything, turns on a sixpence and can also still get through standard doors (the double). The single can fit into the boot of a VW Golf. The buggy is suitable from birth and can will take a child up to about 4.

If I had to choose between them I'd choose the Mountain Buggy. The Baby Jogger is a bit of a thoroughbred, whereas the Mountain Buggy is a solid workhorse and fantastic value for money. You can't argue with 8 years solid use and still going strong!

[Evajay]

To add another alternative: I jogg with my baby (now 16 weeks) in a sling. Make sure it's tightly wrapped so baby is snug and head is supported. I recommend a high quality woven wrap like the didymos. Avoid stretchy wraps for this ( like the karri me) that would kill your back. I use the " wrap cross carry" ( check YouTube for instructions- I use specifically the variation where each leg goes under a strap if fabric first and then you spread it along their back. Finally comes a 3rd layer on top). - perfect position both for when dd is awake or asleep. As I wore her each day since birth I have grown accustomed to her weight. Walking/ jogging like this keeps me extra fit. Only downside is it gets quite hot with her on me. I wear the skimpiest tops to make it better. Also: Make sure the straps are well spread out on your back, that way you spread the weight across. It takes a bit of practice to get the wrap right- but since I learnt after a few attempts it's now second nature. I also go to Pilates once a week to strengthen my back and tone- I found this the perfect combo of exercise and it makes sure whatever I do when I jogg gets checked and bakanced with Pilates.

[fuckityfuckfuckfuck]

Eva, I carry my baby in a sling too. But I can't say I'd recommend jogging with one at all. The potential for the child to get hurt if you stumbled is just too great. I don't think the manufacturers would recommend it either. It can't be very comfortable for them to be jostled about so much.

[MakeTeaNotWar]

Phil & Teds Sport for me - jog with it regularly up and done some very steep hills, both on and off road. DD loves the motion and usually nods off. I have had to replace the tyres though as I've managed to split them which is a downer.

[toobreathless]

We have the quInny Buzz. We didn't really consider exercise when we bought it which in hindsight was a shame as we do a lot of mountain walking.

The pros:
Easy to steer on rough ground
really smooth ride for baby

Cons:
Very heavy to lift over stiles
Quite wide for small gaps
Prone to punctures, bit of a nightmare several miles from home!