Most pregnant people can get their baby to move by having a cold drink, eating a snack, or simply lying down in a quiet room. You’ll typically start feeling movement between 16 and 24 weeks of pregnancy, though first-time mothers often don’t notice it until after 20 weeks. If you’re trying to prompt movement because you haven’t felt much lately, or you just want that reassuring kick, a few simple techniques usually do the trick.
Eat or Drink Something Cold
The quickest way to get your baby moving is a snack paired with a cold drink. A glass of cold orange juice or milk works well because it combines a small blood sugar boost with a temperature change your baby can sense. The sugar crosses the placenta and gives your baby a burst of energy, while the cold seems to startle them into action. A few pieces of chocolate are another reliable option.
Spicy foods are another popular choice. There’s no formal clinical evidence behind this one, but many pregnant people swear their baby becomes noticeably more active after a spicy meal.
Change Your Position
When you’re up and moving around during the day, the gentle rocking motion of your body tends to lull your baby to sleep. That’s one reason you may not notice movement during busy hours. Lying down, especially on your left side, removes that rocking effect and makes it much easier to feel kicks and rolls. Your baby also tends to be most active at night or when you’re resting, so a quiet moment on the couch may be all it takes.
If you’ve been sitting in one position for a while, try shifting. Roll from one side to the other, or prop yourself up with pillows at a different angle. Sometimes the change in pressure and space is enough to prompt your baby to reposition, and you’ll feel that as movement.
Try Sound or Light
By the second half of pregnancy, your baby can respond to stimulation from outside the womb. Talking, singing, or playing music near your belly can trigger movement. Some parents place a flashlight gently against their abdomen because the fetus can perceive light through the uterine wall and may shift in response. These techniques work best after about 25 to 28 weeks, once your baby’s sensory systems are more developed.
Take a Warm Bath or Get a Massage
Relaxing your own body can make fetal movement far more noticeable. A warm (not hot) bath or a gentle massage helps you tune in to sensations you might otherwise miss during a hectic day. It’s less that the bath makes your baby move more and more that stillness and calm let you actually feel what’s already happening.
Why You Might Not Feel Movement Yet
Several factors affect when and how strongly you perceive kicks. If your placenta is positioned at the front of your uterus (an anterior placenta), it acts as a cushion between your baby and your abdominal wall. This can muffle the sensation early on, though research shows that by 24 weeks, women with anterior placentas generally feel movement just as easily as anyone else.
Body size matters less than many people assume. Studies comparing women with higher BMI to those with normal BMI found no significant difference in how strongly or frequently they perceived fetal movement. Women with higher BMI were slightly more likely to notice strong movements when hungry and quieter movements after eating, but overall awareness was similar between groups.
Your baby also sleeps in cycles of up to 40 minutes at a time. During a sleep cycle, you may feel nothing at all, and that’s completely normal. Waiting it out and trying a snack afterward often solves the problem.
How Movement Changes Later in Pregnancy
Early movements feel like flutters, bubbles, or a gentle swishing. As your baby grows, those sensations become unmistakable kicks, rolls, and jabs. In the third trimester, the type of movement shifts. Your baby has less room to somersault, so you’ll feel more stretching and pushing rather than full-body flips. The movements may feel different, but they shouldn’t become less frequent. A consistent pattern of activity matters more than the style of movement.
Most babies settle into a somewhat predictable routine. You’ll start to recognize when your baby tends to be active (often in the evening) and when they’re quiet. That personal pattern becomes your best baseline for knowing what’s normal.
How to Do a Kick Count
ACOG recommends starting kick counts around 28 weeks. Pick a time when your baby is usually active, lie down or sit comfortably, and time how long it takes to feel 10 movements. Kicks, rolls, flutters, and swishes all count. Ten movements within two hours is considered normal. Most people reach 10 well within an hour.
You don’t need to do this every day unless your provider asks you to, but it’s a useful tool whenever something feels off. Keep a simple tally on your phone or a piece of paper so you have a record to share if needed.
When Reduced Movement Is Serious
If you’ve tried a snack, a cold drink, and lying on your side, and you still can’t reach 10 movements in two hours, contact your maternity care provider right away. Don’t wait until the next day. Clinical guidelines from Safer Care Victoria are clear: your own concern overrides any specific number. If something feels wrong to you, that alone is a valid reason to call.
One important note: do not use a home fetal doppler to reassure yourself instead of seeking care. These devices can give you a false sense of security. You might pick up a heartbeat and assume everything is fine when it isn’t, or you might hear your own pulse and mistake it for your baby’s. The FDA has warned that unapproved monitoring devices can produce inaccurate readings, potentially delaying care for a real problem. If you’re worried enough to reach for a doppler, you’re worried enough to call your provider instead.