This is the kit for running with a jogging stroller: slower than your normal run, harder than it looks, and over when the passenger says it is over. It takes two paved multiuse paths. One is the Indian Bend Wash Greenbelt in Scottsdale, an 11-mile multiuse path that passes under or over the major streets. The other is Chicago’s Lakefront Trail, where the Park District lists “caregivers with children in strollers” among the people on the path on any given day.
The thesis is that stroller running is a strength workout disguised as an easy run. An ASICS Novablast 6 for the push. A Thule Urban Glide 3 with its rain cover and a cup holder, and a Lezyne pump to keep its tires firm. A District Vision cap for you. For the passenger, a Sunday Afternoons Play Hat that sits back against the seat, Babiators, Thinkbaby mineral sunscreen, a Thermos FUNtainer, Munchkin Snack Catchers, and WaterWipes. On the wrist, a COROS Pace Pro for the record and a Traska Summiteer that only tells you how long you have been out.
Note.
Runner’s World, citing the American Academy of Pediatrics and Thule, says not to run with a baby under 6 months old, and that a child should be able to sit upright and hold their head steady first. Ask your pediatrician. Always use the harness, use the wrist strap, and follow the stroller maker’s weight and height limits. Confirm current pricing at the retailer.
Doctors of Running · Jan 26, 2026
Pace is the first thing to go.
“I have had to modify my expectations of pace and focus more on effort to ensure I don’t overtrain or overexert.”
Doctors of Running — The Monday Shakeout: Stroller Running Tips after 8000 Stroller Miles (Matt Klein)
Doctors of Running’s Matt Klein wrote this after about 8,000 miles behind a stroller. With his daughter at about 30 pounds, he says he is pushing “about 55-60lbs total.” His long runs dropped from 15 to 18 miles to 10 to 13, and his workout paces slowed from 5:30–5:45 per mile to 6:00–6:45 “despite feeling like I am maxing out.” Stroller running, he writes, causes “a more forward lean (especially uphill)” and loads the calves and hip extensors, so he adds heavier calf raises and deadlifts or squats to his week.
His main technique note is to push, not lean. On flats and downhills, run with one hand on the bar and the other arm swinging, and switch hands. “I trained myself to switch hands every 30-60 seconds,” he writes. Runner’s World’s Cat Bowen gives the same advice and adds three more: use the wrist strap, don’t hold the bar with a “death grip,” and shorten your stride so you do not kick the axle.
Read Doctors of Running · Stroller Running Tips after 8000 Stroller Miles
The pre-run check
From Runner’s World (Cat Bowen, Jul 22, 2025): pull on the harness to make sure it is attached, and check that the wrist strap is secure and unfrayed. Test the hand brake and the parking brake. Lock the front wheel straight. Bring water, snacks, and a charged phone. Put the bags in the basket, never on the handlebar.
The AAP guidance she quotes: “Infants should have full head and neck control before being taken on runs in a stroller.”
Runner’s World · How to run with a jogging stroller
Arizona · Scottsdale / Indian Bend Wash
Indian Bend Wash Greenbelt
“The Indian Bend Wash Greenbelt is an oasis of parks, lakes, paths and golf courses traversing 11 miles through the heart of Scottsdale.”
City of Scottsdale — Indian Bend Wash Greenbelt
The city says the greenbelt’s 11-mile multiuse path has more than 24 underpass and bridge crossings, so users avoid crossing streets at major intersections. That matters when you cannot stop quickly. The city asks path users to travel in the right lane and keep the left lane open for two-way traffic and passing. The greenbelt is a flood-control channel, and the background photo on this kit shows it draining after a summer monsoon storm, so check the weather and stay out of flowing water. The Arizona Canal trail, almost 70 miles long, and the 4.5-mile Crosscut Canal trail connect from Scottsdale.
Scottsdale · Indian Bend Wash Greenbelt ·
Scottsdale · Paths and trails
Illinois · Chicago / the lakefront
Chicago Lakefront Trail
“On any given day activity along the pedestrian and bike trails includes people commuting to work, training for marathons, caregivers with children in strollers, tourists on rental bikes, and people taking a leisurely stroll.”
Chicago Park District — Lakefront Trail
The trail runs from Ardmore Avenue on the north to 71st Street on the south. In 2018 the Park District split the old 18-mile combined trail into an 18-mile Bike Trail and an 18.5-mile Pedestrian Trail, so people on foot, strollers included, have their own trail. In September 2026 the Park District posted that repairs would run over the next several months, one section at a time, starting at 6300 South and moving north to Foster Avenue beach, with asphalt patching, seal-coating, and signs ahead of each work zone. Check the alert before you go, and expect wind off the lake.
Chicago Park District · Lakefront Trail
Smartwatch + Analog
Watch Desk
Two lanes for a run where the pace does not mean much. The COROS Pace Pro records it. The Traska Summiteer tells you how long you have been out, which is the number the passenger cares about.
Smartwatch · AMOLED, dual-frequency GPS
COROS Pace Pro
GPS running watch with a 1.3-inch always-on AMOLED display, dual-frequency GPS, route navigation with maps, and USB-C charging. COROS lists up to 31 hours with dual-frequency GPS. Launched at $349 in 2024. Photographed: Pace Pro, Grey.
DC Rainmaker’s Ray Maker: “I think COROS has built a very solid watch here, arguably one of their best watches I’d say.”
DC Rainmaker — COROS Pace Pro In-Depth Review · Oct 31, 2024
Why Pace Pro here: Maker says “the GPS and heart rate is probably the best we’ve seen on a COROS watch.” On a stroller run, heart rate is the honest number. Your pace is slower and your effort is not. Honest caveat from the same review: at the time, COROS had no flashlight mode, so the bright screen cannot light your way on a dark morning.
Analog · hardened-steel field watch
Traska Summiteer 38 Pine Green
38 mm 316L steel field watch that Traska hardens to 1200 HV, against the 200 HV it says is typical for 316L. Sapphire box crystal, screw-down crown, 100 m water resistance, BGW9 lume, and a Miyota 9039 automatic movement. Photographed: Summiteer 38, Pine Green, Ref. 2196.
Watch Clicker’s Will, on the hardened case: “I never felt worried about whether I would bump the watch into something.”
Watch Clicker — Traska Summiteer Review · Oct 9, 2019
Why go analog for a stroller run: Klein’s rule is the case for it: “modify my expectations of pace and focus more on effort.” His workout paces slowed from 5:30–5:45 to 6:00–6:45 per mile with the stroller, so the pace on a smartwatch mostly tells you what you already know. The useful number is how long you have been out before the passenger needs a snack. A hand on a dial shows that at a glance. Your wrist is also next to a handlebar for the whole run. Traska says its hardened case is “resistant to water, scratches and shocks,” and Watch Clicker’s reviewer stopped worrying about bumps. Honest caveats: Watch Clicker reviewed the original 2019 Summiteer, not this 38 mm version, and at about $750 it costs more than twice as much as the smartwatch.
Pair them. The Traska tells you when to turn around. The COROS keeps the heart rate for later, so you can see the run was harder than the pace says. Klein’s piece is Doctors of Running’s “The Monday Shakeout: Stroller Running Tips after 8000 Stroller Miles” (Jan 26, 2026).
Some buy links are affiliate. We may earn a commission. The price you pay does not change. Gear stays on the kit only if it survives the job. Full disclosure → /disclosure
Thule
The Urban Glide 3 jogging stroller, plus the rain cover and cup holder made for it.
thule.comASICS
Novablast 6: a neutral daily trainer with a responsive forefoot.
asics.comLezyne
Pocket Drive HV: a small, rebuildable aluminum pump for Presta and Schrader valves.
lezyne.comSunday Afternoons
The Kids’ Play Hat: UPF 50+ with a back veil that sits against a stroller seat.
sundayafternoons.comCOROS
Pace Pro: an AMOLED running watch with dual-frequency GPS.
coros.comTraska
Field and dive watches with cases hardened to 1200 HV, including the Summiteer.
traskawatch.com
Doctors of Running · Jan 2026
8,000 miles behind a stroller
Matt Klein on slower paces, shorter long runs, pushing instead of leaning, switching hands, and calf and hip strength.
Runner’s World · Jul 2025
Keep you and your baby safe
Cat Bowen on the 6-month rule, the pre-run check, the wrist strap, and why heavy bags never go on the handlebar.
Runner’s World · Aug 2026
Six jogging strollers, tested
Cat Bowen’s picks, with the Thule Urban Glide 3 as best overall and “Kind of heavy” as its one con.
