Ergonomic child carriers change the game, and Step Caddy’s standing piggyback carrier is earning rave reviews from parents with tired spines and energetic kids.
Adventuring with a child aged 4 or 5 can be both incredible and exhausting. Discover the best hiking carriers for big kids to ensure comfort and safety on your outdoor adventures. Find the top picks for 4-year-olds today!
Discover the best hiking carriers for toddlers to ensure comfort and safety on your outdoor adventures. Find the top picks for 3-year-olds today!
A Complete Guide to Choosing the Right Child Carrier.
Specifically, how to carry your 4-year-old in a way that’s safe, comfortable, and keeps your spine intact.
If you've got a kiddo who is always on the move, you know how tricky it can be for them to keep up. You start off a walk or hike with good intentions, but soon your toddler's tired legs, or their desire for a better view, mean you're giving piggybacks, juggling bags, and wishing for an extra set of hands. Let's face it, bigger kids still have little legs, tire much faster than adults, are much heavier than they used to be, but still need a lift.
The piggyback has long been a symbol of closeness, trust, and spontaneous fun. But as any parent knows, balancing a heavy, squirmy preschooler on your back isn't exactly ergonomic, fun, or sustainable. Fortunately, today’s piggyback riding isn’t about improvising; it’s about innovating - there are a couple of very innovative Piggyback Carriers available that are cleverly designed for the needs of older active toddlers and their heavier siblings, preschoolers.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the average American family spends over 17 hours on road trips each year. For parents of preschoolers, those hours can feel like an eternity. But fear not! With the right strategies, you can transform your road trip into a memorable adventure for the whole family.
“By the time a child is three, the average parent has walked the equivalent of two marathons pushing a stroller.” That’s over 52 miles through crowds, up curbs, across gravel, and over the occasional tantrum.
"Traveling with kids is like packing for a week-long trip just to go to the grocery store."
The quick answer is yes. But there are a few that are excellent and specifically designed for the unique needs of a 4-year-old or 5-year-old. Most child carriers for bigger kids are simply larger versions of toddler carriers and have not taken into account the very different needs and physics of a heavier, larger child.
When looking at picking the right carrier for you, look at more than just the age of your child. Consider their weight and how that will affect your back, shoulders, and arms. Consider their height and how that will affect their comfort levels when packed into a sling, their legs dangling and hitting yours. Consider their energy and activity levels and the frequency of boarding and alighting.
Adventuring with a child aged 2 to 5 can be both incredible and exhausting. Your preschooler is more independent, more mobile, and yes, much heavier. At this age, they’ve typically outgrown framed backpack carriers, but they’re not quite ready to power through a full hike or day trip on foot. Here’s the paradox: most “big kid” carriers ditch critical back-saving features like hip support, shifting the child’s growing weight directly to your shoulders.