If you’re trying to get pregnant, knowing and capitalizing on your fertile days is among the easiest ways to increase your chances of conception. Although most women who are trying to conceive have had a regular menstrual period for more than a decade, a lot of them don’t even know when they’re ovulating! Here’s an easy way to calculate your most fertile days of the month.
Assuming that you have a 28-day cycle, fast forward two weeks from the first day of your last menstrual period. You’re most likely to be ovulating within a few days of that date. However, women can ovulate anywhere from day 11 to day 21 of their cycles, and not every cycle is the same length – which means you’re going to be doing a bit of guesswork.
Aside from the calendar, there are a few other signs you may want to monitor. Use a special thermometer to monitor your basal body temperature, which will drop and then reach a peak when you’re ovulating. Some women also experience a small twinge of pain on one side when they ovulate – so pay attention to any nuances in your body you may feel.
Ultimately, the best thing you can do to up your chances of conception is have regular intercourse – every day to every other day is best. Young women in their 20s and early 30s have about a 20 percent chance of conceiving each cycle, so the odds are in your favor!