Why Babies Love Standing And How To Know When They're Ready
This blog was written in collaboration with one of our Community Partners - Occupational Therapist Leah Foreman from Nurtured Pediatrics
We have to admit - baby standing is really stinkin’ cute. It’s fun, it’s a way to play with your baby — but, is it helpful? Is your 2-4 month old really standing? Here’s what we hear from parents all of the time!
“My baby LOVES to stand!”
“My baby won’t sit they only like to stand.”
“How do I get my baby to sit instead of stand?”
“Can my baby skip sitting?”
“Can my baby skip crawling? They just want to stand!”
It’s very common for babies to seem to enjoy standing and start standing by holding onto your hands at a young age. But is it something you should be promoting? Let’s dig into the details behind your baby’s standing milestones.
REFLEXES
In the early days, you may notice your newborn showing the stepping reflex where their feet appear to “walk” when you touch them to a surface. This reflex (or involuntary movement) usually disappears within the first few months. But wait, your newborn isn’t ready for standing practice just yet! Motor development happens from the top down. Your baby needs to master these skills before standing.
Head Control, Upper body strength, Rolling, Sitting, Crawling, THEN Standing!
SO WHY DOES MY BABY SEEM TO WANT TO STAND ALL OF THE TIME??
From 0-4 or 5 months, your baby has been working on strengthening their extensor muscles (the muscles on the backside of their body). They strengthen these muscles through tummy time. Around 4-5 months This may look like a lot of “swimming” when on their belly with arms and legs up in the air. It also presents as an affinity for extending their legs when you try to sit them up. This is not ‘real’ standing, it is the activation of their extensor muscles.
Additionally. a very early love of standing in newborns could also be a sign of body tension or high muscle tone causing them to feel ‘stiff’. If you feel like it’s hard for your baby to relax or flex their body and they seem uncomfortable often or don’t move their arms and legs equally, it could be worth reaching out to a pediatric physical therapist or discussing with your pediatrician.
But around 4-5 months, despite baby’s apparent love of standing, it is actually more important for baby to develop a balance between their flexor muscles (on the front of their body) and extensor muscles so that they can sit and crawl before they learn to stand on their own. While it’s great that they have strong back muscles, instead of strengthening them more with standing practice, it’s better to work on those core muscles to create a good balance. In addition to strong back muscles, your baby’s cognitive and visual abilities are making it more interesting to be in an upright position where they can see everything going on around them.
This is a great time to start sitting practice.
3 WAYS TO FACILITATE SITTING PRACTICE:
Roll baby to the side to sit them up instead up pulling up directly from their back
Have baby start out by prop sitting with their hands on the floor in front of them.
By age 6-7 months, your baby should now be able to accept the majority of their weight through their legs when you support them in a standing position, however, until a baby is able to pull themselves up to standing at furniture independently, you should still do supported standing (and standing containers) in moderation.
SO WHEN CAN I START STANDING PRACTICE?
Around the time your baby is beginning to crawl on hands and knees, you can introduce pulling to stand.
Signs your baby is ready for standing practice:
They’re over 6 months old
They are working on hands and knees crawling
They are starting to try and pull themselves up on furniture
3 ways to facilitate standing practice (when ready):
Take your couch cushions off to give baby a slightly lower surface to pull up on.