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So you’ve decided that you’re ready to conceived, you’re noticing all the signs of readiness and now you’re wondering: “When am I most fertile?”

Maybe you’re wondering when you’re most fertile with the hopes of avoiding pregnancy – either way you’re in the right place!

Tag along as I break down the key players in your fertility, to best support you on your fertility journey, and in your journey to self discovery and body mastery.

If you’re new here, now’s as good a time as any to share that I help women navigate fertility, pregnancy, birth and postpartum using food, lifestyle and supplementation to help nourish your body, to help you thrive. Whether it be by addressing hormone imbalances, digestive imbalances, infertility or overall wellness, I got you.

Now that we’ve covered that, let’s dive in and learn more about women’s health 😉

Can I Get Pregnant Every Day of the Month?

Many have been led to believe that a woman is always fertile, women can get pregnant every day of the month and that we have to take caution all the time to avoid pregnancy. I’m here to tell you that that is a lie. Not all intercourse leads to pregnancy.

Preparing for optimal fertility includes knowing when you can and cannot get pregnant through the month.

So why was I led to believe this? Honestly, it probably came from a good place – a worried parent or teacher trying to prevent an unwanted pregnancy at a young age or to encourage the use of protective measures like condoms to help prevent the spread of disease. I get it, but it’ just simply not true that you can get pregnant every day of the month.

Realistically speaking, a woman is only fertile for about 5-7 days out of the month, and this number is based on how long sperm can survive inside a hospitable uterus.

When those days fall depend entirely on when you ovulate and on your fertile window.

NO - you can't get pregnant every day of the month

What is a Fertile Window?

Your fertile window refers to the period in which you can get pregnant. This period can be anywhere between 5-7 days depending on a few different factors. After having sex within the fertile window, sperm may survive and hang out in the fallopian tubes waiting for your egg to be released, at which point – it’ go time!

Outside of the fertile window, so long as you understand your menstrual cycle well, you are generally regular and you are on top of how your body may change from month-to-month, you are very unlikely to get pregnant. There is always room for error, especially if your cycle is not regular and you have mid-cycle bleeding that is confused for a period bleed. Knowing your hormones and how your period can affect your fertility is worth the read to help you better understand your cycles.

Either way, knowing your fertile window is a game changer in terms of timing sex for pregnancy and for prevention!

How do I Figure out When my Fertile Window is?

To figure out when your fertile window is, you need to first know when you’re due to ovulate. That may change a little from cycle to cycle depending on how regular you are, but there will generally be a theme as to when it will take place. As a general rule of thumb, ovulation tends to fall around day 14 of your menstrual cycle (where day 1 is the start of your bleed).

Once you’ve determined your approximate ovulation date, you count back 5-7 days. Assuming you ovulate on day 14, that means your fertile window is between days 7 and 14 of your cycle.

With that information, there are signs that you should look out for to confirm ovulation. Signs that I review during fertility nutrition consultations and in my Cycle Literacy workbook. If you wish to learn more about your menstrual cycle, including how to determine when you ovulate, and how work with your body through your cycle, check it out!

IMPORTANT NOTE: not every cycle is the same and no two bodies are the same. It’s important for you to learn your cycle and your signs to determine when you ovulate. While most will ovulate around day 14, some will ovulate earlier or a few days later.

When Should I Have Sex When Trying to Conceive?

It’s important to time intercourse during your fertile window when trying to conceive, but as a general rule of thumb and when working with women and their husbands for fertility support, I generally encourage them to time intercourse over a two day period, closest to ovulation. On that same token, it’s important not to stress too much over perfect timing (it doesn’t have to be at the exact moment you suspect the egg is released, for example).

Once you understand the seasons and the shifts of your menstrual cycle (which can take a few months to do), it becomes easier to identify your fertile window, timing it closer to the actual date of ovulation simply means you have stronger swimmers running in the race for fertilization. While sperm can survive 5-7 days, they eventually get tired and die off – so why not try to get it closer to ovulation!

Without stressing about timing sex on the actual day of ovulation, this is why I suggest trying to conceive a day or two early, this way if you do happen to miss your shot, then you’ve tried and it’s possible you’ve still got sperm waiting to fertilize your egg.

husband and wife sitting on bed holding hands

How Often Should we be Having Sex While Trying to Conceive?

The most important thing to consider when it comes to frequency is to keep things simple and playful. Once you’ve established when your typical fertile window falls, you understand your body and you know when to time things, you’ve more than half way there! It takes one viable sperm to reach the egg to become pregnant – o n e .

With that said, you could get away with having intercourse just once to conceive, but it you want to increase your odds, I typically recommend having sex once, maybe twice (if you want to plan it to a tee) because it’s really all you need!

When it comes to sperm health, it takes 3 months for them to mature. Three months for an immature sperm to become worthy of reproducing. Your man’s sperm stores will be quickly depleted if you are actively trying to conceive too frequently. So let that be your memo to tone it down, to take it easy and to start working with your body, instead of against it.

Either way, there are many ways both women and men can nourish their bodies to best support their eggs and sperm, topics we review when working together.

So, how would you know if you’re ovulating?

Physical Signs of Ovulation

Your body goes through some physical changes as you prepare to ovulate. These changes may look like:

  • Increased cervical mucus
  • Change in cervical position and shape
  • Basal body temperature changes
  • Maybe you feel the release of your egg

Should you wish to learn about about the physical changes your body goes through, throughout your cycle, check out my Cycle Literacy Booklet which has a detailed guide to teach you how to identify those changes and how you can work with them!

Emotional Signs of Ovulation

As your hormones change through the month in alignment with your menstrual cycle, so will your emotions! Leading up to ovulation, you might notice:

  • An increase in friskiness, libido
  • You are more ambitious
  • You are feeling good and energized!
  • That you are ready to take on the world!!!

Understanding how our emotions change with our cycle can help us better attune to ourselves, and help us identify where we might fall in our cycle. “When am I most fertile?” When my emotions tell me 😉

woman jumping

Signs of Ovarian Dysfunction

Look at the signs and symptoms below. Do these apply to you? If so, it may be time to take a look at your diet and lifestyle habits, maybe it’s time to chat – to see how I can help support you! Ovulation dysfunction can affect a wide range of bodily and mental functions.

  • Infertility
  • Frequent miscarriages
  • Low libido
  • Irregular or missing periods
  • Hot flashes/night sweats
  • Estrogen dominance
  • Irritability
  • Vaginal dryness
  • Difficulty with concentration

Ovarian dysfunction is often a result of low progesterone. When you don’t ovulate, progesterone is low. When progesterone is low, you don’t ovulate… Wait, what? Which one came first? Why is progesterone low? It’s definitely low for a reason, reasons I will dive into another day or we can book a discovery call to chat about it, mkaie?

Either way, dysfunction is there for a reason, if you’re experiencing any of the signs listed above, let’s talk – because none of those symptoms are normal, just common.

Can You Ovulate While on Birth Control?

Birth control is not perfect, and whether you ovulate or not depends entirely on the type of birth control you are using. Why does this matter? Because if you have sex, you can get pregnant. Seems like a simple concept, but it’s one that shouldn’t be taken lightly. Are you prepared to take on the responsibility that comes with it should your birth control methods fail?

If you are relying on barrier methods, the pull out method, fertility awareness method, you may absolutely ovulate because you are not changing the chemistry of your body. These forms are the least invasive, especially when it comes to helping to maintain your bodies natural cycles.

If you are using IUDs, injections, the birth control pill, they all have the ability to affect your internal chemistry in one form or another – either by using hormones to alter your chemistry, by stopping you from ovulating, by making your uterus inhospitable or by blocking the passive through your cervix. You are less likely to get pregnant while using these tools, but you are also more likely to need a period to self regulate once you stop using these methods of birth control

Being a woman, ovulation is the * star * when it comes to your menstrual cycle and to your overall health and wellbeing. The not-so-simple act of ovulating is responsible for helping the rest of your cycle balance out, it releases happy hormones, keeps estrogen balanced, keeps you in sync. Ovulation, in my opinion, is the last thing that should be suppressed. This is why working with your cycle is so important.

Optimizing your cycle, your hormones, finding hormonal balance, working with your menstrual cycle – this is the key to long term health, longevity AND it’s the key to your fertility journey and pregnancy.

 

When is a Woman Fertile: Summarized

We’ve learnt that ovulation is the start player in your fertility. We’ve reviewed how to discover your fertile window and when to time sex for best outcomes, we’re covered the basics and with that, you should be good to go!

Days 7-14, those are your most fertile days, mama – with day 14 being your approximate day for ovulation! Remember, knowing your body, understanding its ebbs and flows, working with them and identifying any shifts in your hormones is the key to best keeping track of your cycle and your fertility. 

So take the time to start understanding your cycle today, get to know your body and all that it is capable of. You are a fertile woman who is well on their way to conception (even if you need a little support in getting there)

So have fun, play a little, have a little dance, help yourself feel good!

And for those looking for a little extra tender love and care, let’s chat. Book a FREE discovery call, call or email – I’m here to talk and help you with fertility support, hormone support, and/or bowel support.

For more free fertility, pregnancy and digestive support, sign up to my newsletters to get updates on new blog posts and ongoing events!

Wishing you all the best,

Veronique, CNP
Your fertility and nutrition coach.  

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