What is tummy time for babies?

Tummy time for newborns may seem like all fun and games. But its actually an important developmental step for infants. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends tummy time for all babies.
Tummy time promotes motor skills sensory skills and bonding and engagement. It also prevents your baby from developing a flat spot on their head sometimes called flat head syndrome Luis Garcia MD a pediatrician at OSF HealthCare said.
Benefits of tummy time
To sit run walk or any skill we use for the rest of our life we have to start by building the strength of our muscles. Tummy time strengthens a babys neck and core muscles Dr. Garcia said.

Tummy time is hard work for babies.
This is the best gym of your life Dr. Garcia said.
Tummy time encourages infants to start lifting their heads and taking in new surroundings.
Our babies are mostly head when theyre born. They need to exercise other parts of their bodies. By laying on their stomachs theyre working their neck muscles and stimulating the nerves in their hands.
Sometimes its easy to forget that babies are real little people. Just like us they dont want to see the same thing all day long.
Instead of looking at the ceiling all day you flip them over and its a whole new world to look at. You literally turn their world upside down Dr. Garcia said.
How long should your baby do tummy time?
Initially start with a few short periods of time a day and then increase progressively Dr. Garcia said.
Put them down three to five minutes three times a day.
As they get a little bit older you can start to let them have more and more time.
No matter how you do tummy time you want to do it in a supervised way Dr. Garcia said.
How often should your baby do tummy time?
When your baby is a newborn they can only handle tummy time for a few minutes at a time before they get too fussy. Its OK if they fuss a little while on their belly. But it is a workout for them to be on their belly so dont make them stay uncomfortable for too long.
As your baby gets older they can handle longer periods of time 30 minutes to two hours at a time.
You should do tummy time at least three times a day in the beginning more if you can.
As your baby can handle longer stretches of time on
their