How does your baby feel about tummy time? I was pleasantly surprised to find that my baby boy didn’t hate it! I feel like so often you hear/see babies so mad when it’s time for that tummy time practice and so I just figured my little guy would be the same but he actually tolerates it really well! I’m not saying this to imply I have any special tummy time skills that allow my baby to enjoy it. I think I was just blessed with a baby that enjoys being on their stomach.
Even so, some days are better than others. Sometimes he’s good for several minutes, no fussing, moving his head all around just checking things out. Other times he starts to get a bit worked up after a minute or two. We just try and do a little bit a few times a day so we can keep building his little muscles with longer and longer periods of tummy time.
Get a play gym!
There are a lot of play gyms/mats on the market but we’re big fans of this skiphop one.
It comes with 5 different toys that can hang from it, some of them make noise and one of them also has a mirror on the back. The toys are super easy to remove to put down on the floor during tummy time which is great. The mat itself also has a mirror on it so we can place him over that to let him see himself during tummy time and encourage those neck lifts.
Our little guy loves to look at himself in the mirror! The mat includes a pillow that has been a good support in these early days of tummy time especially since it gives him a little bit of a boost. I also appreciate that the mat has a pretty good amount of cushion so I feel comfortable using it even on our hardwoods.
Or use a swaddle
Another option I like to use for tummy time is a large swaddle in his nursery. I lay him on the swaddle for tummy time and then I can use different toys and objects to keep him occupied and working his muscles. This is great for those that don’t want to have to find somewhere to keep a play gym all the time. Or people like me who like to switch up where we do play time in the house but don’t want to move the mat around everyday.
When we’re downstairs we like to use the playmat but upstairs we can grab a favorite swaddle and get to playing! Some of the things I like to use to play with him during tummy time are rattles, a mirror, black and white books/cards and myself! I like to lay on my stomach right near him so we can make faces at one another.
In the early newborn days we also did tummy time on my belly! I’d lay down pretty flat and we’d lay belly to belly. This can be more pleasant for babies who hate tummy time because they have the added comfort of being snuggled with you! You could even incorporate it into skin-to-skin time with you or your partner too! It’s gotten a bit more difficult to do this since our little man has gotten so wiggly but it was a great way to bond early on.
I’d love to know how your little ones feel about tummy time and if you have any great tummy time tips for other mamas!