Tummy time

[Sparrowlegs248]

How much do you do? Or should you do? DS is 10weeks old and we rarely do it. Its something that i kept just forgetting about. Ive started to do it once a day but hes really not keen. We did 5 minutes yesterday and maybe 3 minutes just now. He just got grizzly and started trying to suck the playmat. Hes so happy and jolly on his back that i dont like turning him.over.

He has really good neck strength and was able to hold his head up from s a few days after he was born, for short spells and is strong and active. Everyone including HCP's comment on how strong he is.

Just wondering if this is something everyone does without fail? Am i being lax i not doing it so much? And how much are people doing at this age?

I found this link really helpful:

mamaot.com/tips-for-making-tummy-time-a-little-less-um-miserable/

imo the only people who really need to do tummy time are those babies who spend their lives strapped in car seats and prams etc.

Neck strength and core body strength can be developed by sitting your baby on your knee/hip, cuddling, when kicking on the floor and when playing etc. If your child is given lots of opportunities to be physical in lots of different positions I wouldn't worry about it....

soon your child will be very pleased with himself as he wriggles from your grasp during nappy changes, turns onto his tummy voluntarily at night and all sorts of things.

Enjoy your baby and try not to worry about all these "rules" for perfect parenting. Only a few of them really matter (sleep position, weening etc.)

I found the link really useful thanks jess although a bit alarmed at the prospect of 90 minutes a day!!

So was pleased to come back andcsee your opinion too fool

I don't think he spends much more than 90 minutes a day laying on his back let alone his front! He does spend time on his playmat, and also in the bounce chair. He spends time in the baby carrier when we go out (every day) and also sitting with me on my lap. I will incorporate a bit more tummy time into our day but will try not to get too hung up on length of time. Thanks.

We only do a few minutes of tummy time a day as DS really isnt impressed. If he doesnt start crying he either falls a sleep or throws up on his mat.

One thing that does make it a little more bareable is rolling up a blanket and putting it down for him to lean on

Im not worried at his lack of tummy time though as i sit him up on my knee and put him over my shoulder to wind - this leads to regular headbutting from DS as he arches backwards and turns his head. Nothing wrong with that kids neck muscles at all!

Never even heard of it in my day

I have only heard of this on MN. It wasn't invented when I had my now teens. They don't seem to have suffered any ill effects from having no TT whatsoever.

90 minutes? NINETY? I feel like a great mammy if I remember to do it for 5 minutes.

We were crap at it because he hated it and screamed his head off. We held him upright on our knee a lot. Works similar muscles. When he started rolling, he decided being on his tummy was BEST THING EVER and has been crawling since 6 months.

My DS hated it so we didn't do it. When the health visitor said 'how's tummy time going?' I'd say 'yes great, we do it every day'. I now have a strong, upright 12 month old who never had a flat head or a bald spot. So imho it's all a load of bollocks.

My dd is 11 weeks - she's not a fan of tummy time!! I bought the lamaze tummy time platform which she does prefer but she's never lasted longer than 5 minutes on it.

When I change her nappy in the morning I put her on her playmat tummy down whilst I choose what she is going to wear. Then I use lamaze in the afternoon. At most she gets 10 minute of tummy time per day.

However she sits up on our laps and likes being carried on our hips so she can have a look around. She is only really on her back when sleeping in the crib and in the pushchair. She has control of her neck and is trying to roll so I'm not too concerned if we miss tummy time on occasion

Thank you all, i feel much less of a crap mummy better now.

Yes villainous 60 minutes by 3 months and 90 by 4. So i assume 3 minutes at 2 months isn't cutting it......

The link suggests a minute after each nappy change but as we've only just achieved consistent non screamy changes i don't think ill be trying that!

The thing I liked about the article was that I realised how much tummy time he was already getting, because it didn't have to be just dumping him on the floor. It may help to think of it as "non-lying-on-back" time!