It's been a long and fun summer (to an extent due to Miss Corona), and I'm sure you've been maximizing your time outdoors more than usual with all the free time we've had to make use of. Along with the increase of people bike riding, in searching for fun things to do outdoors, scooting has grown even more popular amongst the public for leisurely riding or commuting. As fun as they are, scootering comes with many health benefits for growing kids and adults as well. I bet $1 you probably haven't thought too much of any health benefits that came with riding a scooter besides being fun. If you have then congratulations! You are a well researched scooter expert. If you haven't that's okay, you've now entered a ✨non-judgmental space of learning ✨, where you can relax with your coffee/tea and snacks as you become a little more knowledgeable on these benefits.

For Kids:

Balance Development 

Learning and developing a sense of balance is important with the growth of any child. Scooter's come in handy with this because it requires the child to stand upright with one leg, and kick off the ground with the other, maintaining that balance as they ride. With some scooters for toddlers, they have a "lean-to-steer" mechanism that further promotes balance development as they lean through a turn

Motor Skill Development

When riding a scooter, it requires the use of your arms and legs independently from each other which helps to fine tune the riders motor skills. One foot kicks while the other balances, with their hands remaining on the handlebar balancing the scooter. All while keeping their head and eyes watching where they're going to look out for potential obstacles

Coordination Development 

Their coordination gets developed in conjunction with their motor skills from needing to steer, kick, balance, and brake all together. Once they progress from a 3-wheeled scooter to a 2-wheeled scooter, this coordination development will improve as they begin to scoot at higher (safe) speeds, avoid obstacles, stop, and maybe even learn to do tricks

Cognitive Development

A development you probably wouldn't have guessed, but riding a scooter does require critical thinking and quick decision making skills. Each time they ride they must make decisions on when to turn, brake, how much to lean without falling, and the best ways to avoid obstacles. This encourages your child to learn to make decisions and weigh their options properly

Keeps Them Active

The most obvious benefit is the healthy exercise a child gets when riding a scooter. It helps to keep them away from electronics and all that time in front of a screen, maximizing their time outdoors and being physically active

For Adults :

Muscle Development

Balancing the scooter while riding puts a positive demand on your core and lower back muscles to remain stabilized. It also develops your legs and glute muscles with one leg being used to balance on the scooter as you ride (engaging your thigh and glute muscles), while the other kicks off the ground to propel you forward (engaging the ankle, calf, hamstrings, and glutes). In no time you'll start to see a difference in your fitness

Endurance Development

When riding a scooter you can easily build your endurance with the gentle aerobic exercise it provides. By continually kicking off the ground to maintain or gain momentum it elevates your heart rate to keep your heart, lungs, and circulatory system healthy and active

Fitness Improvement

Riding a scooter is generally good exercise for your overall physical health. When you combine scootering with your commuting for example, you will most likely start shedding fat because you'll be burning more calories than you consume. Not only are you burning fat but you're also training and toning your leg muscles with each ride. It essentially becomes an exciting way to lose weight and get toned

Overall, riding a scooter provides great health benefits for both kids and adults. Although some of the benefits listed seem to only apply when riding a kick scooter vs. electric scooter,  the great thing about some scooters is that they can be used as both! Kick into gear with the kick scooter for your fitness journey, or just use for a fun ride as an electric scooter. It's the best of both worlds any way you choose