Take your baby to the gym. Which gym? BabyGym!

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1 Take your baby to the gym. Which gym? BabyGym! The word FOMO (short for fear of missing out) crops up everywhere, even in the nursery where parents and caregivers race from the one stimulation class to the next. All of this whilst checking Google and social media for the latest on what your baby should be doing to ace an IQ test or this is how your baby ends up in the top 10 and is your baby the next victor or victrix ludorum? Finding the balance between trusting your instincts and keeping up with the times is really tricky. So how can parents gauge whether they should be doing more, or perhaps- less? Dr Melodie de Jager, founder of BabyGym Institute International, starts by asking: Is more always better? More natural movement is better, and that is why BabyGym offers busy parents 5 fun classes where mom, dad and nanny learn how to stimulate and develop baby from top to toe. At BabyGym no pain means a lot of gain, and that is why BabyGym offers you one hour (hands-on) classes where you learn how to develop your baby physically, and reap the benefits in many years to come. Believe it or not, but scientific research shows that the quality of baby s physical development in the first 14 months of life determines his or her emotional, social and cognitive development six years later! Your baby s posture, self-esteem, confidence, coordination and movement skills will make learning a fun adventure, life-long. As a baby moves and crosses the three planes (forward and backward, side to side, up and down), balance, counter balance and keeping the head in line with the body (head control) is continuously developed. These skills are needed so that a baby can sit upright, sit still, and develop clever hands, feet and eyes- all the ingredients needed for academic learning in the classroom years later. Join a BabyGym Instructor near you and learn how to stimulate the following muscle groups during a BabyGym class. THE HEAD LEADS ALL DEVELOPMENT It is important that a baby masters head control in the first few months because head control leads all other postural control and physical development. A baby cannot become mobile to roll, sit, crawl or walk without a stable head. Sports scientist, Janique de Jager, and physiotherapist, Celeste Muller, collaborated with the BabyGym Institute to show which muscle groups are stimulated naturally during the BabyGym Firm Foundation programme. BabyGym Institute: JOHANNESBURG

2 us to transfer weight across the three planes while keeping our balance. In this way all movements can be performed smoothly and effortlessly. The core muscles even acts as the base for eye, hand and foot control and allow us to become skillful in sport activities, writing and reading. The neck muscles are needed to stabilize the head and neck, adjust head posture, and provide movement. The following muscles provide proper head control and stability of the cervical (neck) spine. They also assist with movement of the neck and head. Deep Neck Flexors: Rectus capitis anterior and lateralis; Longus colli and capitis. Deep Neck Extensors: Multifidus; Semispinalis Cervicus; Spinalis; Rectus capitis posterior major and minor; Rotatores; Upper Trapezius. The muscles mainly responsible for gross motor movement of the neck and head are the following: Sternocleidomastoid and Scalenes Flexion, rotation and side flexion Upper Trapezius; Levator scapula; Splenius capitis and cervicis Extension, rotation and side flexion Oblique capitis superior Extension and side flexion Semispinalis capitis Extension. The following muscles are mainly responsible for core stability around the lumbar spine (lower back) and pelvis and are developed during a variety of BabyGym exercises: Transversus abdominis; Multifidus; the Pelvic floor muscles. The muscles that provide gross motor movement of the trunk and assist with stability are the following: External and Internal Oblique s Flexion, side flexion and rotation of the spine Rectus abdominis Flexes the spine and tilts the pelvis backward Erector spinae Extension and side flexion of the spine Quadratus luborum Side flexion and extension of the spine. TRUNK ROTATION The first form of locomotion in a baby is rolling, which only occurs once adequate control of the head and trunk muscles are achieved. Trunk rotation makes it possible for a baby to roll over while it simultaneously promotes crawling. The abovementioned, as well as the following hip muscles, make it possible for a baby to rotate his or her trunk. CORE MUSCLES PROVIDE CONTROL AND MOVEMENT OF THE TRUNK Our core muscles provide a stable base for our bodies in the same way that an axis provides stability for a wheel. Stability around the center of our bodies allows BabyGym Institute: JOHANNESBURG

3 HIP AND PELVIS CONTROL SCAPULA (shoulder blade) STABILITY For a baby to be able to bear weight on his legs for crawling and later walking, a stable pelvis and hip joints are necessary. It involves the following muscles: Hip extension (moving the leg backwards) Gluteus maximus and the Hamstring group Hip lateral rotation (outward rotation) Gluteus maximus; Biceps femoris; Gluteus medius (posterior fibres); the deep lateral hip rotators (Piriformis; Quadratus femoris; Obturator internus and externus; Gemullus superior and inferior) Hip Medial rotation (inward rotation) Gluteus medius (anterior fibres); Tensor faciae latae; Gluteus minimus; Semimembranosus; Semitendinosus Hip Abduction (away from body) Gluteus medius; Tensor faciae latae; Gluteus minimus Hip Adduction (towards body) Adductor magnus, longus and brevis; Pectineus; Gracilis. Hip Flexion: Iliopsoas; Tensor faciae lata; Sartorius; Rectus femoris; Gluteus medius (anterior fibres); Gluteus minimus. The position and correct movement of the scapula during shoulder joint movements are very important for a functional upper body. Weight bearing activities assist a lot in strengthening those important muscles (eg. while doing tummy time and crawling) and are addressed throughout the BabyGym classes. The following muscles are responsible for scapula stabilization and movement: Serratus anterior Pulls the scapulae away from the spine and keeps them flat against the ribcage Lower fibres of Trapezius Rotate the scapulae outward during shoulder movements Rotator cuff muscles Rotates the shoulder joint inwards and outwards and keeps the shoulder joint centred. The muscles that are involved in shoulder and arm movements are the following: Pectoralis major and minor Adducts (toward the body) the shoulder Deltoid Abducts (away from body) the shoulder Biceps brachii Flexes the elbow and shoulder joint BabyGym Institute: JOHANNESBURG

4 Latissimus dorsi Extends, adducts and medially rotates the shoulder Triceps brachii Extends the elbow and the shoulder Teres major Extends the shoulder Rhombois major and minor Retracts and elevates the scapula Levator scapula Elevates the scapula. DEVELOPMENT OF THE MUSCLES OCCURS CEPHALO- CAUDAL (top to bottom) & PROXIMAL-DISTAL (midline to the extremities) All the previous mentioned muscle groups are responsible for gross motor control (bigger movements) and must be adequately developed before one can master and become skillful in fine motor control (smaller, more advanced movements). Our fine motor control muscles include the muscles of the mouth, fingers, eyes, and toes. BabyGym mouth activities for clear speech and pronunciation The muscles of a baby s mouth are naturally strengthened through sucking and feeding activities. The mouth muscles are often recruited to support skillful movements of the fingers, toes and eyes. Stimulating the following muscles promotes animated facial expressions and speech while paving the way for confidence and assertiveness. There are 18 muscles involved with facial expression, we have listed 6: Orbicularis oris Closing the mouth and shaping the lips during speech and eating. Can either narrow or protrude the lips Depressor labii inferioris Pulls down the lower lip Mentalis Protrudes the lower lip for a pout Zygomaticus major Draws the corners of the mouth up (smile) Zygomaticus minor Raises and protrudes the upper lip for expressions from a smile to a grimace Risorius Pulls the corners of the mouth outwards. The better the baby s gross physical development in the first 14 months, the easier academic learning follows 6 years later. BabyGym Institute: JOHANNESBURG

5 BabyGym FINGER ACTIVITIES for independence, sport, art & academic skills BabyGym ANKLE, FOOT and TOE ACTIVITIES to improve gravitational security, balance and agility Muscles that extend the wrist and/or fingers: Extensor carpi radialis longus and brevis; Extensor carpi ulnaris; Extensor digitorum Muscles that flex the wrist and/or fingers: Flexor carpi radialis and ulnaris; Palmaris longus; Flexor digitorum superficialis and profundus. Muscles that move the thumb: Abductor pollicis; Flexor pollicis; Opponens pollicis; Adductor pollicis; Abductor pollicis longus; Flexor pollicis longus; Extensor pollicis longus and brevis. The small muscles that are responsible for adduction and abduction of the fingers are the Lumbricales and the Interossei. Tibialis anterior Invertion (turn inward) and dorsiflexion (lifts) of the ankle Gastrocnemius and Soleus Plantar flexion (points down) of the ankle Peroneus longus and brevis Eversion (turn outward) of the ankle Extensor digitorum longus Extension of the second to fifth toe; dorsiflexion of the ankle Extensor hallucis longus Extension of the first toe; dorsiflexion of the ankle Tibialis posterior Inversion and plantarflexion of the ankle Flexor digitorum longus Flexion of the second to fifth toe; assists with plantarflexion of the ankle Flexor hallucis longus and brevis Flexion of the first toe Extensor digitorum brevis Extension of the second to fifth toe Flexor digitorm brevis Flexion of the second to fifth toe Abductor hallucis Abduction of the first toe Plantar Interossei and Lumbricals of foot plays an important role in maintaining the arches of the foot. BabyGym Institute: JOHANNESBURG

6 BabyGym EYE MUSCLE ACTIVITIES to improve eye-hand and eye-foot coordination Orbicularis oculi Controls eyelid movements Superior rectus Turns eye upwards and inwards Medial rectus Turns eye inwards, towards nose Inferior rectus Turns eye downwards and inwards Lateral rectus Turns eye outwards Superior Oblique Turns eye downwards and outwards Inferior Oblique Turns eye upwards and outwards. During BabyGym you will learn how to exercise all muscle groups so that baby develops optimally. Don t miss out on the most sensitive time in your baby s life to develop all his or her muscles in a perfectly natural ánd spontaneous manner! Join BabyGym today BabyGym Institute: JOHANNESBURG