Tummy Time Tips For Fitting It Into Your Day

Tummy time, some babies love it and most hate it. 

When you first have a baby there is so much to do in a day and it can feel really overwhelming to get everything done. Babies aren’t awake very long between feeds and with feeding fully, changing diapers, burping and rocking, the time can go really quickly.

So, how do you actually fit tummy time into the day?

1. You won’t get to it in every cycle at first, and this is totally okay. If you can make tummy time happen once or twice a day after the first few weeks, consider it a win!
2. It doesn’t need to be long. A few minutes on their tummy is great! Don’t put unrealistic pressure on yourself that it needs to be this long and involved thing.
3. It’s okay to do tummy time after eating, as long as your baby doesn’t have reflux and has burped well during and after the feed.
4. Get creative! After I would nurse our daughter, my husband would finish burping her and do some tummy time on his chest when she was really young. This allowed them to bond and gave me a chance to get myself together after feeding, when it was all new.
5. As your baby gets older and OWT increases, it’s easier to fit it into more cycles. I had a playmate in our living room near our kitchen (Brooklyn apartment living!) where she would do tummy time. This allowed me to keep an eye on her but also be able to go into the kitchen to make food or clean something up, while she was on her belly.

There is no need to overwhelm yourself further by adding more pressure to try and fit tummy time into every single wake cycle.

Remember, getting any tummy time is better than no tummy time, so have grace for yourself (and your baby) and just take it one day at a time. 

To sleeping well,
The Full Feedings Family

P.S. If you need help more help with PLAY time or want to learn a simple 3-step method to get your little one (or toddler) to sleep WITHOUT crying it out, make sure to check out The Full Feedings Method Online Programs.