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If you’ve ever taken an exercise class, you’ve probably heard about working on your core. And if you’re like me, you don’t particularly enjoy working those muscles….but they are definitely essential to daily living! These core muscles are the deep muscles your abdomen, pelvis, and back. I’m not here today to encourage you to do more core work, but I am here to give you some tips on how to encourage this muscle development and to help build postural control in kids
Your child’s core muscles develop and strengthen as they grow. As your baby grows infancy to toddlerhood and learns to hold his head up, sit, stand, and eventually walk, he or she develops postural control.
Postural control in kids is defined as the ability to assume and maintain an upright posture while seated without support.
It depends upon the postural (core) muscles. This control is important because it provides a basis of support, allowing for smooth movement of the arms and legs. This support allows your child to develop balance and refine hand function. And while your toddler doesn’t need to be doing crunches, it is important that they build these muscles as they grow to build postural control in kids.
5 Ways to Help Your Toddler Build Postural Control
Luckily there are a lot of fun ways to ensure that you are helping your toddler to build these muscles (no gym time required!) Here are five activities that you can try at home.
Animal Walks
This is a really fun activity for kids (and parents)! There are a number of different ways that you can play it, but essentially your child moves like different animals, with the goal being to have your child close to the ground. Some examples include: slithering like a snake, crawling like a crab, hopping like a frog, crawling like a bear, kicking like a donkey.
You could turn on music. Call out the different movements for your child to do. You could join in, too! There are several great songs that encourage moving like an animal- a quick YouTube search will provide you with a lot of options!
Wheelbarrow Walking
This is a fun game to do with your child! You hold their feet while they use their hands to walk, which builds trunk muscles. Make it even more fun by pretending that they are actually a wheelbarrow and “collecting” items to balance on their backs!
Tummy Time
This phrase is often used for infants but can be helpful for toddlers as well. Have your child do any activity while laying on his or her stomach with their weight on their elbows! A few ideas include: paper and stickers, reading books, watching TV, or building with blocks.
Balancing
This is an easy activity to incorporate in your regular day. Next time you’re out for a walk, encourage your child to balance on the curb as they walk. Or, line up a bunch of pillows and have your child walk across them. If you have a local gymnastics facility, many offer open gym time. Let your child practice on a real balance beam!
Toys
There are a number of commercially available toys that you can purchase that are made specifically to build postural control in kids. They help in building core muscles, including rocker boards, air cushions, dizzy discs, and t-stools. Here are a few product recommendations that you may find useful:
I hope that some of these activities to build postural control in kids helpful to you! Please join us in our FREE Facebook community to share if you tried any of them. As always, if you have concerns about your child’s development and would like to set up a free consultation to discuss your concerns, please reach out! I would love to help you determine your child’s individual needs. We are here to support you as you help your child blossom!
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