Dear Gabriel

Dear Gabriel:

I need your advice! Have you heard of this thing called "tummy time"? It's driving me crazy! My parents insist on putting me on my stomach for play time and all I have to show for it is a sore back, a crick in my neck, and tired elbows! I try to fuss and let them know that I'm not enjoying their "tummy time", but they just don't seem to get the point. How can I get them to understand?

Thanks,

Tummy Time Sucks in Hoboken, NJ



Hey Tummy Time!

Oh yeah, I've heard of tummy time and I agree, it sucks! Unfortunately, tummy time is an important activity and necessary so that we can learn advanced skills such as rolling over, crawling, sitting up, and someday even walking and running! Trust me, I am NOT a fan of tummy time, but I heard my Aunt Laura say that the most important thing she remembered from her Psychology classes was that people who don't crawl as babies can end up becoming psychopaths. Or something like that. Anyway, I looked up the word psychopath and it sounded bad so I'm keeping crawling on my list of things to do before I turn One, and tummy time is going to help me get there.

The real issue here is how to glean the benefits of tummy time while still letting your parents know that you call the shots. My approach is to spend the first few minutes of tummy time working my muscles (remember, lots of reps with lower weights will keep your muscles long and lean rather than bulking you up) and then after a few minutes I start whimpering. If my parents don't respond, I work up to a full cry until they pick me up or roll me over onto my back. And sometimes I like to continue whimpering for a while after they've picked me up or rolled me over, just to make sure my point is being made. Every few days (or so), I give them a little excitement by rolling from my tummy to my back once or twice - just so they can feel good about my progress. I have found that the above approach results in multiple, short tummy time sessions throughout the day rather than one or two longer marathon sessions. This seems to be providing the maximum benefit for building my muscles.

Now, you could certainly try an approach where you put up with the marathon workout and keep your discomfort to yourself, but keep in mind that you run the risk of your parents thinking you like the longer tummy time sessions, and not understanding that what you're really trying to achieve is a one-day-on, one-day-off workout schedule. You'll likely have to pitch a lot of loud crying fits on your desired off-days while your parents try to figure out what's wrong, and you'll have to endure them trouble-shooting a myriad of other solutions to stop your crying (i.e. pointless diaper changes, clothing changes, feeding you when you're not hungry, trying to make you sleep when you're not tired, etc etc).

The best advice I can give you during this time is to try not to get too frustrated, and to get support from friends that are sharing similar experiences trying to train their parents. If you know other babies around your same age - or even better, older babies that can encourage you that you WILL get through it - talk to them about their tummy time experiences. I have found that my stuffed animals are great listeners, and though they do not share my exact frustrations about tummy time, they understand what it's like to be unable to move of their own volition.

Below is a picture of me with Oly Font (the elephant on my left) and Rupert (the bear on my right). I apologize for the informality of my introduction of Rupert - he's never told me his last name.

Oly Font and Rupert are always supportive and there for me when the rigors of tummy time take their toll.


Hang in there - before you know it you'll be rolling over, sitting up and crawling on your own! Keep an eye on my column, because I'll be writing tips for crawlers in a few months, including strategies for making effective messes!

Until then, happy (as happy as it can be) tummy time!

- Gabriel