Breastfeeding Positions – The Football Hold

L- The Cradle Hold, Middle - The Football Hold, R- Lying Down

I looked through tons of photos that I could upload to this blog of what the football hold looks like, and this was the best I could find.  That does not mean that the football hold is not a good position to feed your baby in.  I just think that the cradle hold might be more popular.

The football hold is also known as the “clutch hold.”  I actually probably used this position most often as it works well if you have a strong let-down of milk, as the baby sputters less and has an easier time to swallow (especially younger infants).  It is also a great position to use if you have a cesarean section, because it keeps the baby off of the surgical site.

With the football hold, again I recommend you get yourself a breastfeeding pillow (see further explanation of why here).  For this breastfeeding position, the photo you see shows the mom relaxed once she has the baby on the breast.  However, to get the baby on the breast, this is what you do:

• If you are nursing on the left breast, then you support your left breast in a C-cup position with your right hand with your right thumb on top of the breast and the remainder of your fingers underneath the breast.
• You position your baby with his/her legs tucked under your left arm, and your baby’s feet close to the backrest of your chair and pointing up towards the ceiling (this prevents your baby from pushing with his/her feet on the backrest).
• You hold your baby’s head with your left hand with the thumb and index finger spread out to cup the baby’s head between the two.
• You position your baby’s mouth at the level of your nipple, and then you latch the baby onto your breast when the baby opens his/her mouth open really wide.