Advice on "Tummy Time"

Yeah, as long as they're awake, you can do it- even the first week- I never started that early because we wanted to hold them. :) They may not like it, but it's good for them to be building those muscles! You can also take a beach ball (that's a just a little soft) and hold onto them on top of that- my baby class at the hospital gave us those balls. It might be a fun different perspective for baby.

I wouldn't stress about it too much. I'd say 15 min at a time for the babies that hate it. They all progress at different stages. My babies always walk at 9 months, but some don't walk until 18 months.

you start within the first week that they are born. Tummy time though doesn't always have to be on the floor. Try aying down and resting her on your chest. As she tries to look at your face she will be strengthening the neck muscles which is the purpose. Plus them getting mad isn't bad because it may encourage her to get off of her tummy. So let her cry for 5 minutes or until you can't take it anymore and then try again later after she has calmed down. Time isn't the main thing as much as opportunity. Good Luck.

S. - both my kids had tummy time pretty much from when they got home from the hospital. My kids slept on their tummies. With #1, I tried that whole "back to sleep" thing. But, I remember when my sister was little, the doctors wanted you to put babies on their tummies to sleep. And, my kids weren't resting on their backs.

As for straight up tummy time, well, I suggest doing it during "skin time". I used to lay the kids on me, skin on skin and they were tummy down. That is considered tummy time and babies like to feel skin on skin. When babies get a little older and have better control over their head and neck muscles they seem to like floor tummy time better. I'ts about exposing her to new things and not about forcing her to be unhappy. If you get a minute of tummy time here and there, you're doing great!

Use tummy time when she can lift her head up and be able to hold it up. She is probably getting frustrated because she cannot lift her head up and hold it there. When she is able to do this then put some toys around and put her on her tummy and she will have fun for awhile and then when she gets fussy is when she is tired.

Congratulations on your new baby :)

We started as soon as they uncurled enough to go on their tummies.:) They don't like it at first- but they don't like much because most things are new. Crying doesn't necessarily mean discomfort for newborns. It's their only way of communication so don't let crying put you off. Be nearby.
It's only in the last 20 years or so we consistently put babies on their backs to sleep from day 1 previous centuries we started on their tummy from day 1 so when is not something you should be worried about.

Tummy time effects are cumulative. Lack of tummy time leads to many problems of development. OTs and PTs are seeing floods of problems.

The SIDS and back to sleep campaigns bi product is that parents don't put their babies on their tummies enough or at all because of the worry about SIDS. That was never the intention of the campaign.
Good luck mama.

I started putting both my kids on their tummies around 8 weeks and then it was only for a minute or two. Both of them hated it and got frustrated VERY fast, so anything longer just wasn't going to happen. Sometimes I would do it several times in one day too, like once in the morning and once at night.

As they got older, I'd leave them on their tummies for longer and longer. I also would get down on the floor and lay beside them and talk to them.

Once they start gaining more control over their heads and start rolling, they don't mind it as much. Then they figure out scooting and crawling and being on their tummies is preferred over anything else.

I started doing tummy time with my son when he was 2 days old. He hated it too, but I would do between 5-10 minutes sessions at least 3 times a day. I wanted him to get used to it and it's so good for them to build strength of their head, neck, and shoulders. I found that when he became the most frustrated was when he was able to start rolling over and such. Just stay by her so she knows she's not alone since she doesn't like it. They say it will encourage them to crawl earlier as well. My son also started sleeping on his stomach and still does around 4 months old. I was scared about it and talked with the Dr but there was nothing we could do about it since he would just roll back over if we put him on his back. So tummy time is important.

If she hates it don't do it. She will learn how to crawl/be mobile without it. When I asked my old school Ped. about it he asked me why I thought she need TT and I told him I had read it somewhere. His response was the only thing more dangerous than books were the internet.

Babies magic tea could be a big help to calm your baby. It is the natural and soothing tea with no preservatives.

I start them out from the very beginning (a few days old) with little bits of time on their tummies. Mine have never liked it at first, but I have found that when I start earlier it definitely helps! I will also do what another mom mentioned and have them on their tummy on me instead of on the floor. When they are on the floor I will lay down beside them which also seems to help a lot. I am always surprised at just how much strength they have a just a few days old!
Just keep at it a little bit at a time and it will get better. You can increase by just a minute or two a day and she will get used to it and learn not to hate it as much. Of course there also are those babies that really do hate it and learn quickly to roll from tummy to back so that when they are laid down on their tummy they can just get right out of that position! : )

I don't have advice to your specific question, but to the issue of tummy time in general.

My DD is now 7. We *thought* we'd done a lot of tummy time, but we learn now that her shoulder girdle is underdeveloped. She preferred to be on her back and we let her take the lead more often than not. This has led to challenges for her in fine motor skills, crossing the center line, and other phrases occupational therapists like to use.

The OTs tell us they are seeing a LOT of these problems in preschool kids now, with the push to avoid tummy sleeping for infants.

DS, 5, preferred his tummy. In fact, we could NOT get him to sleep any other way, no matter what contraption we used. He is having a much easier time in school.

So I just wanted to share the long view and tell you you are on the right track to make sure tummy time happens.

I know you already have a lot of responces, and I didnt read them all but I just wanted to put in my two cents.
I didnt do tummy time with my son much until he was about 2 months old. And I only did it for 5 min... then 7 min... then 10 min... and so on... I just slowly progressed the time more, at first he didnt like it but if you put them on a white or light colored blanket instead of a busy bright colored mat, it might not be so overwhelming for her and she might enjoy it more. The other thing I did with my son which he really liked was, I had a george brand boppy pillow and I would lay him on his tummy in my lap and rock him in the chair and rub his back, and he seemed to really like that because he knew I was close and he could see more because he wasnt on the floor. Tummy time doesnt have to be on the floor all the time... Lay her accross your chest and lean back on the couch so that shes more in a pron position, and she might like that better cause she can look at her mommy. Congrats on your little one! Dont stress too much over it!

When I took infant massage, the instructor told me to do tummy time whenever my baby was awake. Yup, that much! My DS1 hated it, DS2 liked it. Try to find some fun toys that she can play with on her tummy... it should help. And she'll get used to it, so you can probably build up to more and more time.

With my daughter I started tummy time at 1 1/2 weeks she didn't like it either. I just got on the floor with her. She was rolling at 2 weeks and actually crawling at 4 months. She army crawled before that. Then she was walking really good by 8 months and baby running by 8 1/2 to 9 months.
I did tummy for 15 to 20 minutes several times a day. As she got used to it I extended the time.

Our kids all hated it until they had some control over it, i.e. rolling over. Just do it as long as she's happy, even if it's just for a few seconds. You can try hanging her over a boppy on her tummy. That worked for our kids some, not a lot. You can also let her lay on your chest at an angle. That usually worked well for us. Congratulations on the new little bit of sweetness!

the suggestion about tummy time being during skin to skin contact is a great one.. esp when they are still so small. I also did tummy time with my daughter was clothed on my chest when she was small. I'd lay on the floor or couch and have her on my chest, she liked to have the eye contact.

when she got bigger, I'd put her on the couch and sit in front of her and play peek-a-boo, etc. she seemed to like that and tolerated a lot longer time on her tummy.

Put her on your tummy so she's looking at your face.

My daughter's PT said 10 minute sessions 2-3 times (or more) a day.

My daughter has special needs so she has seen many many different doctors and specialist. Each one has told me how important tummy time is. The physical therypist says it helps them to improve muscles and helps them hold up their heads better. It helps to keep their heads shaped round (lots of laying in one postion can make their head flat). It helps with the idea of crawling later in life because it puts them in a different position. It can also help with seperation anxienty because the learn to look around them and learn that it is okay to not always see you. My doctors said tummy time was okay at birth. The physical therapist says even if she is on an incline is helpful.

i've had a few professionals tell me that it should be about 15 minutes total through the day. my baby is 4 months and usually gets mad after about 2 minutes on her tummy. so i just do it several times throughout the day. she's getting stronger and starting to tolerate being on her tummy for longer stretches.

Most babies, in my experience, hate tummy time at first.
My babies liked it okay after they learned to turn their head (for a while, they just started at the floor at close range, no wonder they hated it!) IF I was laying down on the floor looking at them.
But still, they didn't like it.
Since the point of tummy time is to strengthen back and neck muscles, I decided to do that a different way. I lay down on my bed or floor and held them above me, then moved them in a circular motion, kind of like a Ferris Wheel. They loved it and smiled every time. It gave me a great arm work out, and they got their muscle strength without crying on the floor!
I also put them on the floor on a blanket until they started to get mad, and as their strength grew, they could stay there longer, until they figured out how to prop themselves on their arms. Then tummy time isn't a problem anymore.
Good luck!

P.S. I'd be quite worried about putting my baby on a hard floor--they still have jerky newborn movements and my boys would always end up bonking their face into the blanket as they got tired. It didn't seem to bother them on a blanket with carpet under it, but a hard floor---OUCH!

You can start right away. My little guy started at 2 weeks old. He hated it so, I would only do it for a minute or two. Don't worry, it all works out, you can do it later if you want and your baby will do fine. Only minutes a few days a week is fine. Good Luck and don't sweat the small stuff.

I would like an answer to the same question - I have a 4 week old and was wondering the same thing. I do have some information too though - I read a baby physical therapy book and she said to put the baby on the floor (hardwood) or on something sort of slippery like vinyl flooring, and make sure the baby has on pants and long sleeves - that they like it better if they slide a little and it teaches them better too.
I put my little guy down for 1-2 minutes a couple times a day in this manner. He is good at holding his head up already (in my arms), but hates the tummy time.