The Importance of Tummy Time

Learn why tummy time is so important for your baby’s development and some great tips and tricks to make the best out of your tummy time sessions!

When should you start doing tummy time with your baby?

Tummy time should ideally begin during the newborn phase. Always remember that tummy time should be done when your baby is AWAKE. Starting tummy time in the first week of life can actually improve your baby’s tolerance to tummy time as they get older. So basically it’s never too early too start!

What are the benefits of tummy time?

Although your baby may initially protest, there are a number of reasons why it’s important to add regular tummy time to your baby’s daily routine. Tummy time is essential to your baby’s core muscle strength, motor and sensory development, and achievement of milestones. While it may not look like they’re doing much, your baby is learning and developing SO many valuable skills and strengths. Here are the primary benefits of tummy time…

• promotes the development of strong head and neck muscles by giving your baby opportunities to hold their head up against gravity.
• improves strength and stability in the shoulders and upper back so your baby can start to bear weight through their arms and hands.
• helps to build strength in the arms, spine, core and leg muscles to promote future motor skills such as sitting up, rolling, crawling and walking.
• encourages your baby to practice reaching and pivoting.
• provides pressure relief to the back of the head which can help to keep your baby from developing a flat spot on their head {positional plagiocephaly}.
• decreases the liklihood of your baby developing acquired torticollis which involves a tightening on the neck muscle on one side of the baby’s head when they primarily maintain one position.
• can help with stimulating normal bowel functioning and reducing baby gas by stretching and “massaging” the abdominal organs
• helps to develop your baby’s visual system including visual tracking and visual organization {switching between near and far vision}
• is associated with improved cardiovascular health and reduced body mass index

Who knew there were so many benefits from just being on your tummy! 😉

How long should you do tummy time for?

The length of time recommended for tummy time will vary depending on the age of your baby. There’s also really no “perfect” amount of recommended time, so just use the following times as a guideline. As a rough rule of thumb, you can aim for 10 minutes of total time on the tummy by the end of the first month, and then increase in 10 minute increments each month after that. The most important thing is that you do it regularly, multiple times per day.

When your baby is first starting with tummy time, start with short sessions {even 30 seconds may be enough to start!} 2-3 times per day. As your baby becomes more comfortable with this position, gradually build up the duration and/or frequency as tolerated.

By 2 months, spending time on the tummy for at least 3- 5 minutes, 2-3 times per day is ideal. If your baby enjoys it, you can always do more! If you find that it’s difficult to keep your baby happy during tummy time, play around with some alternate positions or use a favorite toy, mirror, or even just your face/voice to help engage your baby.

Eventually, you want to aim to get to a total of 45-60 minutes of tummy time activities per day {or more!} and continue with this until your baby is rolling in either direction and starting to move around.

When is the best time to do tummy time?

Ideally you want to do tummy time when your baby is most alert and happy, such as after waking up from a nap. Avoid doing it right after a feeding as pressure on a fully belly may cause them to spit up and never position your baby on their tummy for sleeping. Try to do short periods of tummy time multiple times throughout the day. Tying tummy time to regular activities such as diaper changing, is a great way to remember to do it and your baby will quickly get used to this being part of their routine.

What if My Baby Cries During Tummy Time?

It’s important to remember that working on tummy play is hard work for your baby. For this reason, they’re likely to be a little fussy when they’re first getting used to the position. If your baby is starting to get upset, try to resist picking them up right away and work on comforting them and reassuring them in other ways. Try rubbing their back, singing familiar songs, or working on getting eye contact to soothe them. You are usually their favorite toy, so get down to the ground with them!

If your baby is still not having it, keep the sessions very short and work on increasing the frequency throughout the day to get your sessions in. You can also try the alternate tummy time positions below.

• Hold baby in your arms, on her belly, as you walk around the house.
• Roll baby in and out of tummy time. The movement is distracting, yet productive.
• Helping baby place her hand in a comfortable position might help. Arms should be bent with hands at the shoulders for early tummy time play.

Favorite ALTERNATIVE Tummy Time Positions

While there are lots of benefits of just doing plain ol’ tummy time on the floor, there are a variety of ways to switch things up if your baby initially has difficulty tolerating this position. Even if your baby does well with floor tummy time, these can be fun alternatives to increase engagement and work on some other skills at the same time!

Incorporate Tummy TIME InTO Daily Activities

The easiest way to fit in tummy time is to incorporate it into the activities that you’re used to doing everyday. Try spending a short amount of time on the tummy after a diaper change, carry your baby around the house in your arms on their belly, or burp your baby on your lap while they are on their tummy.

Head outside.

Try doing tummy time outside on a blanket. Babies will love the fresh air, different sounds, and visual stimulation. They might also like being able to touch different textures like the grass.

Chest to Chest

Lay down on your back or prop yourself back in a semi-reclined position, and spend time chest-to-chest with your baby. The more you’re sitting up, the easier the activity will be. Make sure to keep their elbows tucked up underneath their shoulders so they can start to get some weight bearing through their arms and hands. This position is also great for working on connection and eye contact.

Grab a ball.

Using a 55 inch exercise ball or small peanut ball is a fun way to work on tummy play. Position your baby so their elbows are under their shoulder and they are weight bearing on the forearms. Stabilize them by holding on to their pelvis. I like using the exercise ball because it’s easy to adapt the difficulty of the activity to the baby’s ability. The further the ball rolls forward, the harder it will be, and the further you come back, the easier it is. It’s also good for babies with reflux as there is not as much pressure on their little tummies. Do it in front of the mirror to give baby something interesting to look at.

Prop up the chest

Propping up the chest a little bit with a boppy pillow or rolled up towel under the chest is one way to make tummy time a little easier for your baby. If the shoulders are slightly higher than the hips, this will make it easier to push up and lift up the head. Position the support underneath the chest with the arms forward. Start with a 30-45 degree incline and decrease this as your baby progresses. Place a favorite toy, mirror or other incentive in front of baby to motivate them to look up.

Don’t Give Up

Your baby will pick up on your cues, so try to stay calm and don’t give up if your baby is getting upset. You’ve got this, and your baby will eventually learn to love {or at least tolerate!} the time on their tummy. Every little bit of tummy time helps! Start small and celebrate those little milestones. If you’re not having any luck with tummy time or any of the alternative activity ideas above, reach out to your physician, infant development consultant, or pediatric physical therapist for some help.