Preparing for Conception

Since I announced my pregnancy, I have gotten so many questions on what I did, how I changed my lifestyle, and what made a difference. From the changes I've made to working with so many clients who have gotten pregnant while working with me, I think we overcomplicate it! There are ways that you can prepare for conception. One of the first things is understanding what an ideal menstrual cycle looks like so that you can help fix anything that is preventing the ideal cycle because that is such a big predictor of fertility. From there, incorporating a holistic diet and lifestyle will set up the body for the best chance at success.

Something important to note is that it takes 90 days for an egg to fully form, so any diet and lifestyle changes that have begun will now take 3 whole months to affect the egg.

Here are my best tips for preparing for natural conception:

Healthy periods:

An ideal menstrual cycle is 28 days (this is tracked from day 1 of bleeding to the start of the next bleed). However, there is a wider range of normal 21-35 days. Your period should last 3-7 days, and PMS symptoms should be nonexistent or very minimal. The bleeding should not too heavy (for example, you should not be bleeding through a tampon in a couple of hours) or too light (for example, having to only use panty liners during the first few days). You will ovulate in the middle of your cycle (so if you have a 28-day cycle, this would likely be on day 14), and you would have balanced follicular and luteal phases. When your cervical mucus is clear and has the consistency of a raw egg-white, you will know you're about to ovulate.

So what days can you conceive?

Even if you time everything correctly, the chances of getting pregnant each month are generally about 33%.

Ovulation happens for only one day during each cycle. When the egg travels down the fallopian tube and waits to be fertilized, after ovulation, the egg can only live for about 12 hours before - if it is not fertilized, it dies. Sperm, on the other hand, has a longer life expectancy. It can last up to 5 days in the vagina and when you are trying to conceive, you can start as early as 5 days before your day of ovulation. You can have intercourse daily for all days leading up to ovulation as well as on the day of ovulation, or you can have intercourse every other day, which allows time for more semen to be replenished, which will give you a better chance to have more sperm available.

You want to be tracking your ovulation if you're trying to conceive...

This is one of the biggest ways to help you increase your odds of conception each month. Tracking your cycle each month is such a helpful tool because it's easy to forget what past cycles looked like, and history is good to have for any future analysis you may want to do. Find an app on your phone (I always recommend MyFlo) to track bleeding, symptoms, and phases.

You will want to track the following:

1. Days of bleeding and heaviness each day
2. Days of cervical mucus and what it looked like while you're not bleeding
3. Basal Body Temperature - this can help to determine when the shift in hormones happens from the follicular phase into the luteal phase. Body temperature will increase ½ - 1℉ after ovulation.
4. Days of intercourse
5. Anything significant going on in your life - a stressful day, a day of sickness, a very emotional day, etc. Any type of change to regular activity for your body, either mentally or physically, can affect the timing of your cycle and everything that goes on during the cycle.   

It's best to have a few months of tracking to look back on before determining if your cycle is regular or irregular. It should be irregular for at least 3 months in a row to determine an irregular cycle. It's totally normal to have an irregular cycle every once in a while, whether you are emotionally or physically stressed. These things can throw your body off balance and cause it to shorten or lengthen your cycle that month. It can also change the number of days you bleed, the day you ovulate, or the length of one of the phases. If your cycle is irregular consistently, the next step is identifying any hormonal imbalances so that you can correct them.

Once you have a good understanding of what is going on with your cycle, here are some tips you can implement daily to boost chances of conception (ones that helped me!):

1. Spend time outside every day, and get at least 10 minutes of morning sunlight
2. Daily meditation
3. Daily low impact movement
4. Working to decrease stress because it blocks the proper production of hormones
5. Remove any toxic products from plastics to makeup and body care products
   
   

Supportive supplements

1. Prenatal - for all of the essential nutrients you need to conceive
2. Omegas - for anti-inflammation and hormone production
3. Zinc - used to produce healthy hormones and plays a role in cell division
4. Probiotics - promote gut health and good immune function, which are necessary for a healthy conception
5. Magnesium - assists in the production of ovarian hormones
6. Maca - Reduces side effects of hormone imbalances. It is an adaptogen that helps to bring the body back into balance.
7. Vitex — Regulates ovulation, increases fertility, and increases progesterone is too low.
8. Evening Primrose Oil — Contains omega-3 fatty acids that help balance hormones and treat side effects of hormonal imbalance.

Food & Water

Eating cleanly is a really great way to take the stress off your body. I like to follow the 80/20 rule when eating clean so that you're not so strict that you can't enjoy a treat (or two!), but you're mindful of what you put in your body daily. Make sure to get plenty of whole foods, including

1. leafy greens
2. organic protein sources
3. a variety of beans and legumes
4. healthy carbs from sweet potatoes, rice, or quinoa
   
   

Make sure your meals are filled with plenty of carbohydrates, protein, fiber, and fat in a good balance so that your meals are filling and satisfying to your body and give you and the baby you're trying to conceive everything you need. Diets are never good for conception, NO PORTION CONTROL!

There are tons of recipes on the WBK member site to recreate your treats more healthily if you love treats. Ideally, you want all of your recipes to be gluten-free, dairy-free, and are low in sugar, which mines ALL are!

Make sure to incorporate enough water into your body every day. It helps to remove all the toxins from your body via the kidneys, and detoxification of the body will only work as well as how well you are able to eliminate the toxins through the bowels, kidneys, and skin. Water plays a key role in all these functions. To drink enough, it may be helpful to know that the average woman should be getting about 70 oz of water/day. Tea, soda, coffee, and other dehydrating beverages do not count as water!

Sleep

Sleep is the time when our bodies repair and rebuild. Give your body enough time nightly to do the work it needs to help you feel refreshed and restored and will help to rebalance hormones if they need be. Everybody is different but aims to get 8 hours a night when trying to conceive. Having a good bedtime routine that will help you settle in for a night of great sleep is super important.

Work Through Your Feelings (this one was so important for me!)

If you find you're stuck in your thoughts about when or if you're going to get pregnant, know that it is causing unnecessary mental stress on your body, manifesting as physical stress. It's important for you to try to release these stressors from your mind because they have a negative impact on your body, especially when it comes to fertility and the ability to conceive. Try your best to let go of control and allow things to flow naturally. Trust that your baby will come through when it's time. I found that releasing negative thoughts and stressors was essential for what I needed to do when I conceived. The best way for me was using a journal and a therapist. Continuing to ruminate or letting these patterns or thoughts run your mind will wreak havoc on your hormones.

I hope this is all helpful! Let me know if you have any tips! X

K