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Step 1
Choose a safe place. Don't try to navigate busy city streets while pushing a stroller and keeping an active toddler nearby. It's too easy for accidents to happen, even when your toddler is obedient and the traffic is slow. Instead, opt for parks with walking paths or areas with wide sidewalks set back from the road.
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Step 2
Practice with your toddler at home or in the driveway. Put your baby in the stroller (or practice with a baby doll) and teach your toddler how to hold on to one side of the stroller handle. Explain that you need help pushing the stroller. Toddlers love helping. Do some practice rounds in the living room or around the driveway. You'll have to walk slowly enough to accommodate your toddler, and it might be awkward at first. If your toddler has trouble holding on at a particular spot on the handle, find another place for him to hold, just be sure his hands and legs are safe from getting caught in the stroller wheels.
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Step 3
Create a handle for your toddler to hold, if it's too awkward for her to hold the stroller itself. You can use a dog leash hooked to the handle of the stroller, and let the toddler hold the handle of the leash.
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Step 4
Keep your toddler on the inside of the walking path or sidewalk, that is, the side away from foot traffic or vehicle traffic. That way, if your toddler falls or lets go of the stroller and starts to wander, you are standing between him and people or vehicles. There is often grass on the side of the path away from the road, so if there is a fall he might have a softer landing.
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Step 5
Take short walks at first. Remember that a toddler's legs are short, and even though she may have a lot of energy she uses it up quickly when matching an adult's longer stride. Start with a short 5- or 10-minute walk. Bring water for her and for yourself. As you walk more, you can take breaks to sit and have a drink or to let her run around in a field or on the playground for a few minutes.
