Everyone good day and a wonderful mood! I hope you started your morning with family exercises? Have you stretched well, done 2-3 exercises to strengthen your back muscles for the children and yourself? Are you being lazy again and saying that you will start on Monday? But I recommend starting right now!
When you walk with your child, you probably pay attention to the children running around the streets. There is a slender girl walking, and next to her, a boy slightly hunched over under the weight of a school backpack and a bag with shoes. Well, she probably goes to gymnastics or dancing, but the boy doesn’t pay attention to his posture at all.
When he grows up and becomes a man, even if he is tall, he will not look stately. The habit of slouching has been going on since childhood, which means you need to get rid of it urgently. Even if your baby is still just a baby, believe me, it’s time to strengthen your back muscles. Today we’ll talk about how to do this at home.
For the tiniest “swallows”
Pediatricians say that gymnastics with a child should start at 6 months. Don't rush to start right now. First, let's do a little readiness test: put the baby on his tummy, then gently lift him by the waist with both hands. If the back muscles are strong enough, the child will “depict” something like a swallow pose. Poorly developed muscles will not allow the baby to hold his body upright, keeping both the head and legs at the same level. This is a warning sign. You need to start working with such a baby as soon as possible.
Here are some useful exercises for babies under one year old that will help strengthen their back. Take note, dear ones, and don’t forget to do them regularly. These exercises are also suitable for children with cerebral palsy and will help gradually strengthen weak muscles.
- Swinging on a gymnastic ball. Place the baby on his stomach on the ball and, holding it by the armpits, begin to rock it back and forth. At the same time, you can hum your child’s favorite song, recite rhymes, nursery rhymes, or just talk to him. Soon this will become the baby’s favorite home “attraction”, and will bear fruit in terms of developing the back muscles.
- If you have already mastered the previous exercise well, let's complicate it. Now we will hold the baby by the hips and roll the ball away from us and bring it closer again. When rolling away, the baby should bend his back.
- Take the child in your arms, with his back facing you. Holding him by the butt and legs, we begin to bend forward. At the same time, the baby’s muscles will tense to keep the torso suspended. To prevent the baby from getting scared, first secure him a little.
Don’t forget about regular massage: rub, knead, stroke the baby’s back, lower back, and neck. Let this become a kind of stretching and relaxation after exercise.
We chop wood and take off on a plane
From 3 to 5 years When the child is ready for more intense loads, special attention needs to be paid to strengthening the back. The following fun exercises await you here. It is better to do them with the whole family. It's more fun and more effective.
"Airplane". Stand straight, feet together, winged arms spread to the sides. Now we begin turning the body to the right and left, sometimes we perform “planing” and perform the same movements in the diagonal plane. Have you arrived? Then let's go chop wood!
So, exercise “Lumberjack”. Feet shoulder-width apart, hands at the top in a “lock”, imagine that a hatchet is clamped in them. And with sharp strokes we lower it onto imaginary firewood. Happened? Now we lie down on the floor and turn into swallows. Lie on your stomach, arms slightly to the sides. We begin to lift the body up, moving our arms slightly back. You can make it more difficult: raise both your legs and your upper body. Three or four, finished the exercises. Praise yourself and your child and don’t forget to repeat tomorrow, doing 1-2 more approaches.
Let's break up the sedentary school days
In junior school age, at about 6 years old, you need to decide on the sports section that the child will attend. Now the baby will spend a lot of time in a sitting position, both at school and at home doing homework. Plus a load of knowledge in the form of a heavy backpack with textbooks. So it’s not far from scoliosis. Therefore, we definitely continue to do exercises, small exercise minutes in between doing homework, and attend general physical development groups, children's fitness or gymnastics.
To prevent your child from shirking when you are not at home or busy, record an educational video with exercises for him. It will be much more visual and fun this way. And now, mommies-trainers, the exercises themselves are for children from 6 to 8 years old.
- Squats near the wall, without lifting your back and back of your head from it.
- Walking with a bag of sand or salt on your head (for variety, you can walk around a chair/chairs, dance slightly, trying not to drop the “load,” like Indian movie actors).
- Riding a bicycle lying down (you thought this was an abdominal exercise? Yes, but it also perfectly strengthens the back muscles).
- Cat backbends up/down.
- Raising straight legs while lying on your back and touching your toes to the floor behind your head (be careful, this exercise can only be performed after warming up, so as not to damage the muscles).
- Bridge (simplified version). We won't use our hands here. Lying on your back, bend it upward, as if you were a small bridge over a stream).
- Boat. We lie on our stomachs, lift our outstretched arms and legs off the floor, and sway as if on the waves.
My first coach
Starting from the age of 10, the child’s motor activity increases more and more. Try to spend more time outside during the warm season, playing outdoor games with the whole family. Outdoor sports complexes and stadiums should become your permanent habitat in spring and summer.
The back muscles are well used when running. Therefore, when going on a picnic, take a ball with you, play football, and play catch. A lifelong habit of exercise is now forming, so apply good example, do physical exercise at home.
An effective exercise for endurance and strengthening the back muscles is the plank. Standing on your elbows and toes, we try to keep your body in a level position, your pelvis should be in line with your heels and head, not hanging down or protruding upward. Start with 20 seconds, then gradually increase the time.
Various bends, including those with weights (small dumbbells), turns with them, squats, a bridge (only a real one - on the arms and legs) will help support the back muscles, train them, and form correct posture.
Explain to your schoolchild that sitting at the computer is not the best way to spend time, set an example, and soon your child will wake you up at 5 am with the words: “Mom, dad, how about going for a run?” You are the best and main coach in your child’s life, so do your job diligently and with love!
We've finished the exercises for today, let's move on to water procedures. See you soon!
I am glad to welcome you again today to my blog. The back muscles bear a tremendous load; the proper functioning of the internal organs depends on them. Beautiful posture is not only pleasing to the eye, but is also a sign of health. Our children are growing and developing quickly.
Are you wondering what effective exercises for children to strengthen back muscles? Let's talk about this today.
For a 6 month old baby A fitball will be useful for practicing. The payload will turn into pleasant fun for both mother and baby. Light, simple exercises will strengthen your back and abdominal muscles.
- put the child on his back and roll the ball forward/backward;
- Turn the baby over onto his stomach and repeat the exercises.
You can also do rotational exercises on fitball. Always hold your baby during activities. Do not place the child on the ball after a hearty lunch or breakfast; the duration of such exercise should not be more than 10-15 minutes.
When baby 8 months old, he can already sit confidently, he can be placed on the ball. Roll back and forth, rotate, but hold the baby by the hips. Be ready at any time to secure your baby and grab him under his back. Make gentle movements with a small amplitude.
Remember, the more a baby crawls up to a year, the stronger its back will become. Crawling – best exercise in this age.
Children from 1 to 3 years old will enjoy simple daily exercise
Allow your fidgets to jump and run. Children from 5 years They can easily climb up and down ladders and ladders. If possible, visit the pool. Everyone knows that during swimming all muscle groups are involved.
For every day from 4 years
Strengthening your back is necessary for strong posture and proper functioning of internal organs. Some children from the age of 4 show signs of curvature of posture. How to warn? Do daily exercises at home.
It is especially important to do gymnastics when you are older. preschool age at 6 years old or 7 years old. School zone ahead.
How to help a student?
IN 8 years children are still the same restless ones. They not only obediently go to school with heavy briefcases, but also happily run around with them after last call. Be careful when choosing a backpack junior school student. It is better if it has an orthopedic back, a rigid frame and light weight.
At high school age, in 9-12 years You can teach your child to consciously control his posture. He should remind himself to keep his back straight when sitting at his desk or while walking.
The exercises described above are familiar to everyone from childhood, they are suitable for all ages, and can be performed by the whole family. Strengthen not only your back, but also your useful family tradition. There's nothing better long walks, entertaining games on fresh air. Make sure your child alternates exercise as often as possible. Took breaks while doing homework.
For the oldest and most patient
Mom, don’t forget about your posture, because the most important thing in a woman is beautiful posture. Otherwise we worry about the children, but we ourselves walk like old women
I hope you liked my article? Then share it on in social networks with your friends. Everyone Have a good day and proud gait!
To do this, there is a special test for the back muscles - these include:
- trapezius muscle, originating from the occipital region and located in the upper back. It is responsible for extension of the head and displacement of the shoulder blades;
- The latissimus muscle is located in the lower back and covers the side of the chest. In action, it brings the torso closer to the limbs, and is also responsible for lowering the raised arm;
- muscle that straightens the spine. It is located along the line of the spinal column.
Rules for preparing for classes
Testing can begin after the baby reaches six months of age.. To do this, you need to place the baby on your stomach, and then lift the baby, holding your hands at the waist. Normally, it should be held in a canopy, while leveling the back to the so-called “swallow”. This exercise helps determine whether children need to strengthen their back muscles.
Once the level of muscle development and muscle strength have been determined, you can begin training. You will also need to return to this test periodically to analyze the results of your training and note your results and achievements.
Complexes for training
Exist special exercises for the back for infants:
- You need to strengthen your baby's back in those moments when he is in the arms of an adult. For this purpose, you need to carry the baby with his back to you, supporting him with his hand under the butt. You can also hold it in this position and lean forward a little and straighten up. This method helps the child learn to independently hold the upper body upright. The exercise must be repeated periodically throughout the day. It is imperative to secure the baby and clearly control the position of his body.
- good for muscle development. How to strengthen a child’s back with its help? It is necessary to place the baby on the ball on his stomach, while his legs should be directed towards the adult. At the beginning of training, it must be kept in the armpits. Carry out rolling movements, directing the baby either away from you or towards you. In this way, the baby, regardless of age, learns to arch his back in the shape of a boat. Do not overload the child, especially at the initial stage of training; it is enough to repeat this exercise three to four times. After this, you can change the direction of movement by turning the baby in a circle (clockwise or counterclockwise).
- When the previous exercises begin to be easy for your baby, try to complicate the task a little. To this end, support the baby not in the armpits, but by the hips. So the baby will independently hold his back in the canopy, first for a few seconds, then the time will constantly increase.
Massage and its role in the physical development of a baby in the first year of life
In addition, there is a strengthening one for children. It is also necessary as children learn to sit independently at six months. Therefore, it is important that by this age the baby tries to keep his back straight. This will help to correctly distribute the load on the skeleton and will be a good prevention of various curvatures of any segment of the spinal column.
Massage technique for a child of the first year of life
How to strengthen your baby's back muscles with massage? To begin with, you should place the baby on his stomach. At the same time, his legs should be directed towards the adult.
The massage is carried out in several stages:
- Stroking. Use your hands to move your hands up and down along your spine. After this, stroke with your fingertips in the direction of the ribs from the spine to the side.
- Trituration. Rub the area near the spine in a spiral with your fingertips, moving from bottom to top, then along the growth of the ribs.
- Kneading. You need to warm up the muscles on the sides of the body, directing movements from bottom to top. In this case, you should grab and slightly pull the muscles with your hands. And at the end of the massage, you need to relax the baby’s muscles by stroking.
Regardless of what level of physical development is detected in a child at the initial stage of training, regular classes by parents (or a professional instructor in massage for children) will help catch up with “successful” peers. If a significant lag is detected before the start of classes, it is advisable to consult the child with an experienced orthopedist-traumatologist, and begin the classes themselves with a qualified instructor.
A child is considered an infant until he reaches the age of one year. This period is very important for the development of the baby’s musculoskeletal system. The stronger and stronger the muscles are, the faster and more confidently he will learn to crawl, sit, and then walk. In addition, developed back muscles will help to form a beautiful healthy posture for the child and serve as a preventive measure. various diseases associated with spinal curvature.
Properly selected exercises and massage will help to form beautiful posture in a child.
Special gymnastics and massage are used to strengthen muscles. A set of exercises is selected depending on the age of the child. Some of them can be performed at home. In addition to the benefits for muscles, joint gymnastics will bring pleasure from the time spent with the baby, and will strengthen the bond between the baby and parents, if you create the right mood.
Strengthening your back from the first days
You can put your baby on his stomach from the first days of his life. This will be the first useful exercise for developing the muscles of the back and neck. At first, the child will only be able to turn his head to the side, then he will try to keep his head in an upright position. At first a few seconds, then the time will gradually increase.
The following exercise uses the Galant reflex. Lay the baby on his side, holding him with his hand. Use the fingers of your other hand to move along the child’s spine, pressing lightly. The movement should be done not along the spinal column itself, but next to it, stepping back about one and a half centimeters, first on one side, then on the other. Reflexively, the child will try to bend his back in response to the touch. The exercise is very simple, but it develops the muscles of the spine and its flexibility well.
Exercises on a large gymnastic ball strengthen a child’s back well. Until the age of three months, only rocking movements can be performed. To do this, the baby is placed on the ball, first on his tummy, then on his back, then alternately on each side. This exercise also promotes relaxation and more efficient bowel function.
During exercises, do not forget to talk to your baby, smile at him, and hum. Then gymnastics will become even more enjoyable.
Strengthening your back from six months
Full-fledged gymnastics can be performed no earlier than the child reaches the age of six months. Before this, doctors recommend testing muscle strength and readiness for physical activity.
For the test, the child is placed on his tummy, supported by his hands at the waist, and slightly raised above the surface. If the muscles are sufficiently developed, the baby will be able to hold the swallow pose while suspended. If this does not work, then mandatory training of the back muscles is necessary. The test must be repeated regularly in order to understand whether the exercises are effective or not.
With a six-month-old baby you can perform the following set of exercises:
- Take the child in your arms with his back to you, hold him in the pelvic area. Together with your baby, slowly bend forward and straighten. Over time, the baby will be able to support his back on his own, but in the first stages he needs insurance. Repeat three to five times.
- For this exercise you will need a gymnastic ball. Place the child with his stomach on the ball, supporting him in the armpit area and rocking the ball back and forth. At this time, the child tries to hold the swallow pose for five seconds. Repeat five to eight times.
- A more complicated version of the previous exercise, if the child copes well with the easier one. Everything is the same, only you need to support the baby not in the armpits, but in the hips.
Strengthening your child's back with massage
Massage movements will allow you to both prepare the back for loads before exercises to strengthen the back, and relax the child’s muscles after the complex has been completed. Three types of massage movements are used: stroking, rubbing and kneading.
The massage always begins with stroking. To do this, place the baby on his tummy and stroke the baby with your hands along the spine in the forward and reverse direction alternately. Repeat five to eight times.
Then proceed to rubbing. Use your fingertips for this. You need to rub it in a spiral. Also in the forward and reverse directions alternately. Repeat five to eight times. Change direction. Rub the baby's back not along the spine, but sideways along the ribs.
When performing a massage yourself, be sure to remember the rule that doing any manipulation directly with the spinal column is strictly not recommended! The massage should be done along the spinal column, stepping aside about one and a half centimeters.
Strengthening your back from the age of three
Gradually, along with the growth and development of the child, the load on the back muscles also increases. Therefore, you need to continue training by making the exercises more difficult. Since it is quite difficult to hold the attention of a three-year-old child, turn the task of how to strengthen your back into a game and play it together.
Before starting the actual exercises, you need to do a short dance warm-up to allow your body to prepare for the upcoming loads. This is an important point to avoid the possibility of injury.
The following exercises are suitable:
- Exercise Airplane. To perform it, you need to stand straight with your feet together. Stretch your arms out to the sides, parallel to the floor. Rotate your torso along with your arms alternately in both directions, adding a tilt at the same time.
- Exercise Lumberjack. Stand straight, feet shoulder-width apart. Place your hands behind your head, fingers clasped together as if you were holding an ax. Then you need to sharply remove your hands from behind your head and lower them down, as if you were chopping a large, thick tree.
- Exercise Swallow. The most famous existing exercise for the back. At the same time, it continues to be one of the most effective for developing back muscles. To perform this exercise, you need to lie on the floor on your stomach. Legs and hips lie on the floor, arms also lie on the floor, but spread in different directions. Then you gradually lift your head off the floor, followed by your chest, pulling your shoulders back as much as possible and arching your back.
Strengthening the back through physical therapy is best done according to a program, the preparation of which is best entrusted to an experienced doctor. Then it will take into account all the necessary criteria, such as age, level of physical fitness and developmental characteristics. You also need to remember that only regular exercises will bring benefits, not occasional ones.
The time for massage and gymnastics, which is done to the baby at home, increases significantly after 6 months. Now we spend at least 30 minutes on various exercises with the child. What is it for? Children need to strengthen the musculoskeletal system: the muscle tone of the legs must be normal, the support reaction of the feet must be developed, the baby must be able to hold objects well and move actively. At the age of up to one year, development is so intense that not a single day should be missed. We use a variety of techniques: all kinds of exercises, swimming, toys and exercise equipment to develop motor activity, as well as massage. In the video you can see what it looks like in practice. In our article we will describe all the techniques in detail.
After six months of life, the child sleeps less time and is awake more. The duration of gymnastics and massage also increases noticeably, the baby perceives such activity with pleasure
Don't forget to take your child to the pediatrician regularly. Light massage also has contraindications if physical development any abnormalities are detected in the baby. The possibility of even the slightest risk must be excluded. Any practice is intended to be beneficial. If careless movements can cause harm, all techniques should be canceled until the specialist reapproves the massage and exercises.
If up to six months baby massage was simple, now more complex techniques will be required, and therefore it is advisable to receive qualified training from a specialist in order to perform all the exercises correctly. It is better to conduct the first sessions under the supervision of a massage therapist, who will monitor your actions, give recommendations and correct mistakes. All this is necessary for safety and greater efficiency. By competently working with the muscles of the back, arms and legs, we will help the child’s body, which is not yet fully strengthened, to develop correctly, form posture, etc.
Gymnastics and massage classes with 6-month-old babies begin with techniques that we have already used before - (more details in the article:), and then new exercises are gradually added. When the abdomen and buttocks are massaged, not only stroking is used, but also pinching around the navel. It strengthens. Pinching on the lower back is not recommended. The massage ends with relaxing and soothing strokes - they relieve tension and have a relaxing effect.
Classes are conducted in the form of a game and are accompanied by funny jokes, nursery rhymes, rhymes, and songs. The mother herself needs to be in a great mood so that the child also feels it - a positive emotional mood will maximize the benefits of the classes.
Baby massage at 6-7 months
From 6 to 7 months, babies are very active and try to sit and crawl. We do the following:
- Stroking hands.
- “Boxing” (5-6 times). Lay your baby on his back and extend your arms towards him - he will grab your thumbs. Imitate boxing movements, but without jerking. Bend one handle, straighten the second, then straighten the bent handle and bend the straight one. Point the handle closer to the center so that the shoulder rises slightly. At the same time, it will slightly turn over, first on one side, then on the other (we recommend reading:). The exercise is aimed at strengthening the muscles of the arms and shoulder girdle.
- Foot massage.
- “Slides with legs” (5-6 times). With your baby lying on his back, grab his legs so that your thumbs are located on the front surface of the shin, and the rest on the back. The child’s leg needs to be straightened, and the other leg should be made to slide along the surface, as if he were skiing - this helps strengthen the leg muscles and develop the support reaction. If your muscles are tense, you can start with stomping, gradually moving on to sliding.
- Active stretching (4-6 times). Invite your baby to reach for toys by hanging them a little further than usual.
- Flexion and extension of the legs (6-8 times). This is done one by one and at the same time.
- Leg circles (3-5 times). It is necessary to make the child's legs bent at the knees and hips circular movements clockwise and back.
- “Swallow” (2-3 times). Place your baby on his stomach with his arms outstretched. Grab his torso from below by the sides and lift him, resting his legs on your stomach.
- Abdominal massage.
- Turning over. When the baby is lying on his stomach, turn him over onto his back, and then back onto his stomach (3-4 times).
- Back and buttock massage.
- Sitting down with arms outstretched (3-4 times). The baby should lie on his back and rest his legs against your stomach. Holding his arms, spread them and carefully lift them into a sitting position.
- Crawl.
Many people start sitting down before six months. You should not support your baby in this, since the musculoskeletal system is not yet ready for such loads.
Massage program at 7-8 months
When the stage of independently assuming a sitting position passes, children try to crawl. To support this desire, they are laid out on the floor. New massage techniques and exercises are being added, but you should not ignore the ones you already know - they will also be useful. How can a child develop motor activity, coordination of movements and rhythm:
- "Boxing".
- Actively pulling the handles upward for an object (4 or more times).
- Flexion and extension of the legs (8-10 times). This is done one by one and at the same time.
- Circular movements with legs (6-8 times).
- “Bridge” (2-3 times). This can only be done with the help of mom.
- Tummy massage.
- Turns (4 or more times). At 6-7 months, the baby rolls over on its own from tummy to back and back. If he still doesn’t quite manage to turn completely, you can help a little - lightly push him under the butt, pull out the handle from under his side, or put a toy as an additional stimulus on the side where the baby turns over.
- Sitting down by the handle. The child holds on to you, as already described, but not with both hands. You hold it by the handle with one hand and hold your knees with the other. You need to slightly lift the baby so that the elbow of the second handle rests on the surface, trying to rise. You can hold him in a half-sitting position on one buttock for a short time, and then carefully lay him on his side. The exercise is repeated 2 times with each handle.
- Massage of the back and buttocks (we recommend reading:).
- Rotation of hands. When the baby is sitting, draw circles with his hands clockwise and counterclockwise 2-4 times.
- Crawling after an object.
- "Martin". Vaping options may vary. So, a 7-month-old baby can be circled around the room, supported under the chest. “Swallows” and “Planes” train well the vestibular apparatus and the muscles of the entire back surface of the body.
Crawling for a toy is also physical activity, and a considerable one at that. This exercise can be offered to a child when he is already a little tired of regular gymnastics. The desire to be active in children should be supported, but children should not be left alone for a second. Parents need to be very attentive to all movements so that through negligence the child does not receive even a slight injury.
Supplements at 8-9 months
The more the child moves, the less massage he needs. At 8-9 months there is no longer a need to do it every day, but still, up to a year, periodic repetition is useful (see also:). This is especially true for massage of the abdomen, back and buttocks.
Stroking is necessary to relax the muscles, and pinching, rubbing, patting and kneading are necessary to strengthen them. It is necessary to combine these two types of load so that development proceeds evenly.
We continue to use previously mastered skills and add new ones:
- "Boxing".
- Bending and extending the legs in turn and simultaneously (8-10 times).
- “Coachman” (8-10 times). It is done while sitting, imitating the swaying of the coachman.
- Tilts (from 4 times). Having laid the baby on his back, his legs need to be bent and connected with his knees. The knees need to be rhythmically tilted to the right and left along with the pelvis. Such movements strengthen the oblique abdominal muscles, and the child learns to independently turn to the right and left.
- Abdominal massage.
- Back and buttock massage.
- “Swallow” (2-3 minutes).
- Crawling on all fours. You can arrange catch-up games or competitions.
- Torso turns behind the ball (from 4 times). For this exercise, the baby needs to be seated.
- "Wheelbarrow". An exercise loved by all children. It lifts your mood and trains your muscles well. It is recommended to perform it both as part of a massage program and separately, whenever there is free time. First, the child needs to be placed on his stomach, and then the upper body should be raised with emphasis on the arms. The mother also lifts her legs and holds them herself, and the baby walks on straight arms.
- "Bike". When the child lies on his back, the mother makes movements with his legs, as if rotating the pedals of a bicycle. Change the direction - sometimes towards yourself, sometimes away from you.
Normally, 8-month-old children already sit confidently, crawl quickly, and the most active ones try to stand up and even walk, holding onto a support. Of course, such activity pleases parents, but there is nothing to worry about if the baby has not yet started these attempts. Over time, everything will come, but now the main thing is to prepare him for further achievements and discoveries, and the result of his efforts will please you very soon.
