Taking a Jillian Michaels approach to tummy time

Ok, no more Mrs. Nice Guy. Why? Because MNG gives in, aims to please, and lets you off the hook when you don't feel like working out. For the past few months I've been fairly easy on The Chubs. If she starts fussing after 30 seconds on her tummy, I take her off. Where has this gotten us? Absolutely no where! Recommended tummy time is 15 minutes a day. We probably do 4 minutes on a good day if you combine all the sessions together.

Today I took more of a Jillian Michaels approach with her. She was on her tummy for probably about 45 seconds, and started to whine. I immediately told her firmly. "Look little muffin, babies all across the country have to do this same exact thing everyday. You are not the exception. Do you want to roll over? Sit up? Eventually crawl and walk like ME?!? Well it's time to buck up and take this like a man (or in your case, small infant Chubadub). No more excuses!"

I wonder if I could hire Jillian to make an appearance on our tummy time mat, and talk some sense into my lazy little girl (without the profanities por favor).

More on Terrible Tummy Time

The more I research about tummy time and making The Chubs comfortable on her belly, the more frustrating it gets. It seems as though I've tried almost everything, and alas, nothing works. The Senorita could not loathe it more.

I'm starting to wonder if her tiny little arms are not long enough to support her body yet. Because of the IUGR diagnosis when I was pregnant (Intrauterine Growth Restriction), her head grew normally but the rest of her body slowed in it's growth leaving her with tiny little appendages that were measured in the womb to be about 6 weeks behind. When I get her up from naps and she promptly stretches her little arms up in the air, they barely go above her head. Her finger tips are usually in line with the top of her head (or slightly above). See example:



Now try pushing yourself up if your arms were this short and small compared to your head.

Another thing that is irritating is the disclaimers that you should not put your child on their tummy right after they have eaten, or when they are cranky or fussy. This is problematic since The Chubs stays awake about 30-45 minutes tops after she finishes eating. There is a fine line between a full belly and a cranky child. If I wait too long, she's already borderline fussy and putting her on her stomach makes it worse. If I don't wait long enough she's uncomfortable from her last meal and spits up promptly when placed on her tummy. This advice is absolutely no help.

Yes, I've tried laying next to her and talking to her. Yes, I've tried putting toys on the floor to distract her. Yes, I've tried having her lay on me. Yes, I've tried putting her on my shins so she can look down at me. She's not buying any of these tricks. You can't fool her. My next step is going to be rolling a towel and placing it under her chest so she's not flat on the floor, however I highly doubt this will make a difference either, because even when she lays on my chest at a considerable incline, she still fusses. I'll keep you posted, and hopefully have a video so you can see the agony firsthand.