Win 1 of 50 Trikes - Little Tikes 'Little Trikers' with Greg Rutherford

Weekends. Relaxation. Family time.

All things that I always think will occur together…and then the weekend arrives and it’s more like:

Weekends. AAARRRGGG clean dodge children busy destroying the house clean again attempt to tackle to do list except can’t even FIND the to do list and EEK IT’s 10pm on Sunday.

So it was no surprise to me to learn that:

today an independent survey of 2,000 UK families, commissioned by toy company Little Tikes, reveals that parents are fed up with the lack of quality time spent together, with the average mum and dad experiencing seven pangs of guilt a week! Being too busy or tired to give kids their full attention and working long hours have been named amongst the top guilt triggers. Little Tikes has linked with Olympic Gold Medallist Greg Rutherford to encourage families to ditch the guilt and enjoy the great outdoors this summer with their ‘Little Trikers’ campaign. They’re giving 50 4-in-1 Sports Edition Trikes away to inspire families to join in the sun this summer.

The survey reveals that UK parents are regularly left feeling guilty that they don’t go on more family days out, rely on the television to occupy kids while they get the chores done and don’t have more patience when dealing with their families. On a mission to get everyone out and about, having fun and discovering new places, Little Tikes’ ‘Little Trikers’ campaign has teamed up with gold medal Olympian Greg Rutherford and his family to encourage families to make the most of the sunshine and go for a walk, release some happy hormones endorphins and feel fit, strong and inspired at the same time. Greg, along with his partner Susie, is all set for a summer of fun with their son Milo in his 4-in-1 Trike Sports Edition, as he turns nine months old this month.

Well, ok, the first bit was no surprise. But giving away 50 4-in-1 Sports Edition Trikes? That’s just awesome!

And Little B knows just how awesome it is, since she’s been travelling around on her own for a couple of weeks now, after we learnt some great tips from Greg Rutherford as part of the Little Trikers campaign – all about how to lever ourselves up from the sofa and make the most of outdoor family life. With the top five things in particular being:

Getting out all together as a family. You can walk and talk at the same time, and also arrange to meet up with friends or extended family members for a bit of quality catch up time. Locally, we are lucky to have the Superworm and Gruffalo trails in the forest which are very trike friendly and the kids love being able to explore and run around.
Watch your steps – The recommendation is that you try and walk 10000 steps a day. Sometimes I feel like I’m doing that anyway, running up and down the stairs constantly but in reality it’s hard to know…luckily there are lots of apps that will monitor that sort of thing for you, and getting out with the Trike soon mounts up the steps without quite so much of the craziness that comes with being cooped up indoors.
Look up – and see the world through the eyes of your children. Sometimes it’s easy to forget all the inspiration around you, and the little things that really are quite interesting if you take time to actually see and enjoy them.
Walk tall – Exercise doesn’t need to be anything fancy. Pulling in your tummy, holding your shoulders straight and going out for a walk can be everything you need for a bit of daily invigoration. And because the handle of the Trike adjusts to different heights, it’s easy to get a pushing level that works with good posture no matter how short or tall you are (proved by my 5’3” and the Other Half’s 6’5” selves!).
Change it up – The same familiar walk each time gets a bit boring (I’m thinking school run…booo). Whether it’s a tour of local parks, a bit of geocaching or checking out some never-before-visited local woodland, there are plenty of opportunities all over the country to do something a bit different. And if you’re lacking inspiration, there are some ideas from other parents on the Little Tikes’ interactive map and on Twitter and Instagram with #toptriketrails.

The 4-in-1 Sports Trike is great for all of this because it’s very easy to steer compared to others we have tried, and with it’s robust chunky wheels it can handle a variety of terrains pretty easily. Walking around Willen Lake in Milton Keynes, I was able to chat to Greg and some of the other bloggers there, hold D’s hand, and still easily push and manoeuvre the Trike around with my other hand. Little B loves going in it, even though she’s too small to steer or pedal herself at the moment – it makes a nice change from being stuck in a pushchair and the waist bar, five point safety harness and infant foot rest mean she is comfortable and secure whilst we walk along.

From an adult perspective, having a reasonably sized storage bag (big enough for our nappy wallet and keys-wallet-phone essentials) and accessible cupholder is a big bonus, as well as the storage box behind the seat that she can stash all her treasures in. And the handle is easily removable, meaning we can stash it away quickly or get it in the boot of the car with no problems.

With it being 4-in-1, there are still three more stages for her to progress through as she grows too – learning, where she can start to figure out pedalling; developing, where the waist bar is removed and she can have a go at steering and pedalling with a bit of parental assistance; and finally independent, with the parent handle removed and the full trike control in her own little hands. At an RRP of £99.99 I think it’s pretty good value as it will last for a good few years – as demonstrated by Little B’s big sister who has happily jumped on it when given the chance and loves to pedal around!

It seems Milo is pretty pleased with his Trike too, as Greg says:

“We need to inspire future generations to feel fit, happy and enjoying quality time together. Going outside for a walk is the perfect way to unwind, get some exercise and wake up the senses! Plus it’s fantastic for your child’s development to, with so many things to see and do along the way. Make the most of the time you have together, put down the phones and tablets and cherish these precious moments in the great outdoors!” He goes on to say; “The Little Tikes 4-in-1 Trike is a brilliant alternative to a stroller – helping to make your little ones really feel part of the adventure!”

If you’d like to see for yourself the difference a 4-in-1 Sports Edition Trike could make to your family life, then head along to www.littletikes.co.uk/littletrikers and let them know what kind of Triker your little one would be. All entrants who have five likes or more will be entered into a free prize draw to win one of 49 4-in-1 Sport Edition Trikes, with one overall winner chosen at random to win one 4-in-1 Trike Sports Edition and £1,000 worth of toys, for even more family fun.

And if you’d like to get triking straight away there are lots of great special offers on at the moment too 🙂