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Day 141 of 280 · 20 weeks + 1 day

Head to heel

Last reviewed · 2 min read · 8 sources · Plain-text version

Twenty weeks and one day. Last week 15.3 cm, this week 25.6: why the number jumped, and a tape measure on the kitchen table to see it.

Size this week
about the size of a banana
Length this week
around 25.6 cm from head to heel
A Latina woman with a small bump in a loose shirt looking down at a tape measure pulled out across a wooden kitchen table beside a mug, warm afternoon light.

Twenty weeks and one day. Last week the NHS said 15.3cm; this week it says 25.6cm. Your baby did not grow ten centimetres in seven days. The tape moved.

Your baby

A single yellow banana on a plain white linen cloth, soft daylight.

Measurements are now taken from head to heel (NHS). In earlier weeks, babies are measured from the head to the bottom, because the legs are curled up and hard to see (NHS). So last week's 15.3cm was head to bottom (NHS), and this week's 25.6cm, about the size of a banana, includes the legs (NHS). The difference is mostly leg. They're busy ones: your baby is getting more active daily (NHS).

Your body

Tiredness and sleep problems stay on the list, and the NHS notes that leg cramps may wake you at night (NHS). Part of the broken sleep is plumbing: your kidneys filter extra blood and make more urine, and the growing baby presses on the bladder, so there are more bathroom trips at night (MedlinePlus).

From here on, the number that matters is yours, not the baby's. At each follow-up visit your provider checks your blood pressure, your weight, the baby's heart rate, and the measurement of your abdomen (OWH). That tape across your belly is how growth is followed between scans.

Try today

  1. The tape-measure moment

    Time: 5 minutes

    1. Find a tape measure or a long ruler.

    2. Pull it to 25.6 cm and lay it on the table. That's head to heel this week (NHS).

    3. Beside it, mark 15.3 cm: last week's number, head to bottom (NHS). The gap between the two is roughly the legs.

    4. Take a photo of the table for this week's page.

    Make it work:

    If there's a banana in the house, it goes next to the tape (NHS).

Watch for

  • Normal

    round ligament pain, which most often occurs between 18 and 24 weeks (MedlinePlus).

    See your provider right away

    for constant, severe abdominal pain, possible contractions, or pain with bleeding or fever (MedlinePlus).

  • Normal

    swollen hands and feet (NHS).

    Seek care immediately

    for extreme swelling of your hands or face (CDC).

  • Normal

    more trips to the bathroom, day and night (MedlinePlus).

    Call your provider

    for pain when urinating or a change in urine odor or color, which may signal a bladder infection (MedlinePlus).

For you

The NHS numbers are averages, and the page says "around" every time (NHS). Your scan report will have its own numbers, and later ultrasounds can assess the baby's age, growth and position (MedlinePlus). Don't measure your baby against a banana, or your bump against anyone else's. The only comparison that means anything is you against yourself, visit to visit.

If you're the partner: the tape measure stays on the fridge. Each week, pull it to the new number before she's up.

Sources

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

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