Tummy Time
What is Tummy Time?
Tummy Time is one of baby’s first exercises—and the most important!
Tummy Time is the period during the day your baby spends awake and on their stomach. It is a crucial exercise for baby’s visual, motor, and sensory development.
Baby can begin Tummy Time as a newborn, and continue throughout baby’s first year.
Tummy Time Basics
Why does my baby need Tummy Time?
To develop the core muscles of the neck, back, and shoulder muscles
To meet developmental milestones
To possibly help prevent early motor delays and conditions, such as flat head syndrome (positional plagiocephaly) and twisted neck (positional torticollis).
When should my baby start Tummy Time?
As a newborn baby, as soon as they come home from the hospital.
How long should you do Tummy Time?
Aim to achieve at least an hour of Tummy Time total per day by 3 months of age. This hour of Tummy Time can be broken up into smaller parts. From newborn age, start with a few minutes at a time and build up to longer sessions.
How often should you do Tummy Time?
Start with small increments of a few minutes at a time, several times a day. Eventually, try to do longer Tummy Time sessions, eventually building up to a full hour.
At what age should baby stop Tummy Time?
Once baby begins crawling, around 7-9 months, they will be getting the developmental benefits of Tummy Time while moving, and it is not as essential to have them do Tummy Time. However, it still beneficial to have baby spend some time in the Tummy Time position (also known as prone position) during play.
What Conditions Can Tummy Time Help Prevent?
In addition to having proven developmental benefits, Tummy Time can help prevent two conditions: positional plagiocephaly and positional torticollis.
Positional plagiocephaly is the development of flat spots on the back and side of the head, which can lead to asymmetries of the head and face.
Positional torticollis is the stiffening of neck muscles, causing baby’s head to tilt to one side.
How Does Tummy Time Help With Meeting Milestones?
Tummy Time is crucial for healthy motor, sensory and visual development.
Motor
Strengthens baby’s back, neck, and core muscles.
Build a foundation for baby to meet motor milestones including rolling, sitting, crawling, and more.
Sensory
Feeling different textures (blankets, carpet, etc.) on their arms, hands, and cheeks can help baby’s tactile sense (sense of touch).
As baby moves and their weight shifts, they gain a sense of body awareness.
Positioning baby differently helps develop their movement and balance (vestibular sense).
Vision
Helps develop eye and hand coordination. By looking down at their hands, baby is seeing how they move and what they can do.
