If you are planning to conceive you would have heard people say to you that you shouldn’t travel, jump, bend or lift weights during ovulation. You would have also heard that intercourse during ovulation guarantees conception. How far is that all true? What is ovulation? Why is that period so important while planning to conceive and how to track it? To know the answer to all these read below
What is Ovulation?
Ovulation is the process where the egg is released from the ovary and stays in the fallopian tube for 24 hours to be fertilized. If you have a typical 28- day cycle the ovulation happens around 14th day. However, the cycle length varies from person to person and hence the days of ovulation vary too.
Why is ovulation so important?
If you are planning to conceive then intercourse five days before and after your ovulation period is important. The life of sperm is 3 days and the egg stays for 24 hours in the tube. Not all sperm fertilize with the egg. It just takes one sperm to attach to one egg and it cannot be determined which sperm would. So intercourse for ten days is crucial since it increases your chance of conception. This is why your healthcare provider would advise you to have intercourse between the 10th to 20th day of periods if your periods are regular.
What happens during ovulation?
In a person with a regular cycle, a follicle develops from the ovary anywhere between the 12th to 14th day of periods. It happens from either the right or left ovary (alternate sides each cycle). The follicle then starts to mature between the 14th to 16th day of periods and ruptures anywhere between the 16th to 18th day and releases the egg from the surface of the ovary. In some this even delays till the 20th day of the period. Once the egg is released it waits 24 hours for sperm to fertilize, if fertilization doesn’t take place it sheds after two weeks as periods.
Why would my healthcare provider advise me to have intercourse on alternate days during ovulation?
Having intercourse every day will not affect the sperm quality or motility but studies have shown that count reduces when intercourse is done every day since the time gap is short. Therefore it is recommended to have intercourse on alternate days so that there will be more sperm that tries to attach to the egg and the odds of conception are higher.
Should you avoid certain activities during ovulation?
Studies have shown that vigorous exercising for more than 5 hours per week has resulted in anovulation (where no ovulation takes place) in 50 percent of the women whereas exercising 30 minutes every day (3.5 hours per week) has avoided anovulation and improved the chance of fertilization. Stress during ovulation produces a hormone called leptin which is found to delay the process of conception. This is why you will be advised to avoid stress during ovulation. Traveling doesn’t affect ovulation in any way. It’s a myth that it affects ovulation. But if you are traveling between time zones moving from one country to another then it does affect ovulation. Lifting weights during ovulation doesn’t affect conception in any way but post ovulation if heavyweights are lifted it may affect the process of implantation. Lifestyle factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, caffeine intake, and eating mercury content fish also disturbs ovulation. Also 30 percent of anovulation is due to lifestyle factors.
Why is it important to track ovulation?
If you have regular periods throughout the year, then you can just have intercourse alternatively between the 10th to 20th day of periods. But tracking ovulation is important for women with irregular cycles, as it helps the women to identify the time of rupture of the follicle. There are cycles where the ovulation period may get delayed or it may not happen(Anovulation). Hence it is very important to track ovulation in women with irregular cycles rather than in women with regular cycles.
Ways to track ovulation
1. Physical signs
Your basal body temperature will increase and it can be recorded by special thermometers available in pharmacy. Another sign to look out for is that you will feel pain on one side of your tummy (since the egg is released from one side of the ovary). You will also notice tenderness in your breast region. You will notice that your cervix gets higher, becomes more soft, and opens slightly (It is difficult to assess this properly on your own).
Pros: The most simple tool for assessing ovulation. Helpful for women who are newly planning to conceive.
Cons: Not much reliable since all these can occur any day between your cycle too, not just during ovulation.
2. Ovulation tracking apps
There are lots of free apps that claim to predict ovulation even in women with irregular periods. So how reliable are they? According to research, not more than 21 percent. Therefore it is not recommended to use an app that predicts ovulation based on dates or months if you are planning to conceive.
3. Cervical mucus
According to science, your cervical mucus will be dry and sticky from day 1-6, Creamy from day 7-9, Wet and clear from day 10-12, and from day 13 it is egg white. Therefore the most fertile days are when you have wet and clear or egg white mucus.
Pros: Easier to predict and free and safe and reliable
Cons: There is a high chance that the cervical mucus method does not work since the look and feel of the mucus can change based on several outside factors and the interpretation of cervical mucus texture is subjective.
4. Ovulation kit method
It involves predicting ovulation using an ovulation kit that looks similar to a pregnancy testing home kit. All you need to do is add few drops of urine on the stick and wait for two lines to appear. The days when both the lines appear the brightest are your ovulation days and you can intercourse within 48 hours (two days) from the bright lines that have appeared. On the days before and after ovulation you will see that only one line is bright and the other would not be much visible or very light.
Pros: Exactly predicts your days of ovulation and more comfortable alternative to cervical mucus
Cons: Expensive. Can give false positives at times. Will not work in case of anovulation or delayed ovulation.
5. Follicular study method
This would be the most preferred method by gynecologists for tracking ovulation while planning to conceive. It involves performing a transvaginal scan that gives information on the thickness of your endometrium and the stage the follicle is in (whether it has been released, matured, or ruptured). It accurately gives you information on when you can have intercourse and when you shouldn’t.
Pros: Gives information exactly even on anovulation and delayed ovulation. 100 percent accurate.
Cons: Some women find it very uncomfortable since the probe is inserted into the vaginal canal. Not suitable for women with vaginismus
