Fertility fitness – how, when & why exercise can support conception
Expert fitness instructor and co-founder of myMindBodyBaby, Lyndsey Clabby, knows more than a thing or two about fitness and fertility.
Sharing practical support and guidance, she explores how to keep moving and get into the best shape possible for natural and assisted conception, as well as pregnancy. Plus, her signature 20-minute pre-conception workout.
Let’s go.
Can exercise support fertility?
Good news for those trying to conceive – and for anyone who loves a good sweat session. Research published in Fertility and Sterility has shown that moderate exercise may help increase your chances of getting pregnant. And if you’re not a big fan of exercise, there are plenty of ways to gently incorporate more movement into your life.
If you’re in the ‘hate all exercise’ camp, remember that exercise doesn’t have to mean going to the gym. It also doesn’t need to be a big ordeal every day.
There are lots of ways to fit 30 minutes of moderate exercise into your day. A 15-minute walk at lunchtime? You’re already halfway there. For more quick win inspo, check out this super-easy, do-anywhere, free workout.
What do we mean by ‘moderate exercise’?
Moderate exercise is often described as the ‘talk but not sing’ level of intensity. In other words, you’re working hard enough that singing would be a challenge, but you can still hold a conversation in short sentences with your workout partner.
If you’re trying to conceive, there’s no need to feel as though you have to become a fitness fanatic overnight. The key is finding a level of activity that feels manageable and sustainable for you.
Almost every day? That’s not always possible
If you’re not currently exercising, the idea of working out five or six days a week might feel completely unrealistic. But remember, movement doesn’t have to mean a trip to the gym or a full workout. There are plenty of simple ways to build more activity into your week.
Walking is one of the easiest places to start. It’s free, you can do it almost anywhere and all you need is a comfortable pair of shoes. Have a dog? Even better! Add a few extra streets to your daily walk. Or, instead of sitting down for coffee with a friend, why not suggest a walking date?
Looking for a way to spend some quality time with your partner? A brisk walk together could be a great option. There’s also evidence that maintaining a healthy weight can support male reproductive health, so encouraging your partner to join you could be a win-win for both of you. This study, published in Reproduction, looked at the relationship between body weight and sperm quality.
And now for the suggestion that might make some of you wince: getting up a little earlier!
If mornings work for you, try setting your alarm 20-30 minutes earlier, laying out your workout clothes the night before and doing a simple workout at home. Once it becomes part of your routine, you may find that you feel more energised – ready to take on the rest of the day.
For those lucky enough to have gym facilities at work, try scheduling a workout or two into your week in the same way you would a meeting. Blocking out the time in your diary can make it much easier to prioritise – and a little movement during the working day may give you an energy boost when you need it most.
Regular movement that makes you feel good
There’s good reason to make regular, moderate movement part of a healthy lifestyle when you’re trying to conceive. Research suggests that moderate physical activity may support reproductive health, while very high levels of strenuous exercise can sometimes have the opposite effect, particularly when they’re accompanied by inadequate energy intake or significant weight loss.
The takeaway? You don’t need to train like an athlete to support your fertility. Aim for regular movement that feels good for your body, fits into your life and is something you can realistically stick with.
How can exercise support fertility?
Regular exercise can support your overall health while you’re trying to conceive, and there are several ways it may also benefit reproductive health. From supporting a healthy weight and metabolism to helping manage stress, movement is an important part of a healthy lifestyle.
1. Ovulation support
Your body needs enough energy to support reproductive function. Having a very low or high body weight can affect hormone production and ovulation, which may make it harder to conceive.
BMI (body mass index) is often used as a general measure of healthy weight, but it doesn’t tell us everything about an individual’s body composition or health. What matters for fertility is making sure your body has enough energy and nutrients to function properly.
Exercise can be part of maintaining a healthy weight, but more isn’t necessarily better. Very intense or excessive exercise, particularly when you’re not eating enough to meet your energy needs, can disrupt the hormones involved in ovulation and cause periods to become irregular or stop altogether.
If you’re doing a lot of high-intensity exercise and your periods have become irregular, it’s worth speaking to your GP or fertility specialist. Similarly, if you’re concerned that your weight may be affecting your fertility, professional advice can help you find an approach that supports both your health and your fertility.
2. Stress management
Some level of stress is part of everyday life, and it’s almost impossible to avoid it completely when you’re trying to conceive. Fertility treatment and the uncertainty of waiting for a positive pregnancy test can add another layer of emotional pressure, too.
And being told to ‘just relax’ when you’re trying desperately to get pregnant? Not particularly helpful.
Exercise can be a useful way to support your mental wellbeing and manage everyday stress. You might also enjoy mindfulness, meditation, breathing exercises or simply making time for something that helps you switch off.
There’s no need to turn stress reduction into another thing to feel guilty about, either. Find something that genuinely feels good and fits into your life. If that happens to be a gentle fertility-friendly yoga flow, even better.
3. Metabolic health
Regular physical activity can help support a healthy metabolism, cardiovascular health and insulin sensitivity. This can be particularly relevant to fertility because metabolic health and reproductive health are closely connected.
For example, insulin resistance is common in people with PMOS (formerly known as PCOS) and can contribute to disrupted ovulation. Regular movement, alongside a balanced diet and other lifestyle measures, can help support insulin sensitivity and overall metabolic health.
Exercise also increases blood flow throughout the body, including during and after physical activity. However, it’s important not to overstate this as ‘oxygenating’ the uterus or directly improving egg health – there isn’t good evidence that exercise has this kind of direct effect.
4. Healthy inflammatory response
Inflammation gets a lot of attention in the fertility world, but it isn’t automatically a bad thing. Inflammation is a normal part of the body’s immune response and plays an important role in processes including ovulation, implantation and menstruation.
The concern is more about chronic, excessive inflammation, which is associated with a number of health conditions that can affect fertility, including endometriosis and some metabolic conditions.
Regular physical activity can have anti-inflammatory effects and is associated with lower levels of some inflammatory markers. Research has suggested that even relatively short periods of exercise can influence the body’s inflammatory response.
The important thing to remember is that exercise isn’t a fertility ‘fix’. Rather, regular, appropriate movement is one part of looking after your overall health while you’re trying to conceive.
What about during pregnancy?
If you need a little more motivation to pull on your trainers, there’s another potential benefit to staying active: regular physical activity during pregnancy may help reduce the risk of gestational diabetes (GD).
Gestational diabetes is one of the more common complications of pregnancy. The proportion of women affected varies between populations and depends on factors including how GD is defined and diagnosed.
And while you can’t exercise your way out of every risk factor, research suggests that staying physically active before and during pregnancy may reduce the likelihood of developing GD.
Once you’re pregnant, you may be offered testing for GD depending on your individual risk factors and where you live. In the UK, people considered at higher risk are typically offered an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) at around 24–28 weeks of pregnancy. US guidelines recommend universal screening, meaning almost everyone is tested between 24-28 weeks.
So, yes: those walks, swims, strength sessions or pregnancy-friendly workouts aren’t just about keeping you feeling fit. Regular movement can be one small but worthwhile part of supporting a healthy pregnancy, too.
Lindsey’s 20-minute pre-conception workout
Ready to add a little more movement into your week? Pre-conception fitness pro Lindsey has designed this simple 20-minute routine to get your heart rate up, work your whole body and leave you feeling energised rather than completely wiped out.
You don’t need a gym or any equipment, and you can adapt the moves to suit your current fitness level. As with any new exercise routine, start at a level that feels manageable for you and build up gradually.
3-minute warm-up
Start by gently raising your heart rate and warming up your muscles. Pick a few movements you enjoy and keep things flowing:
- Dance around to your favourite song
- Squat and reach
- Step or jog on the spot
- Try some jumping jacks, or step jacks if you prefer something lower impact
Your circuit – repeat twice
Move through each exercise, taking around 15 seconds to rest where indicated. You should be working, but you don’t need to go all-out.
Lunge with overhead reach – 10 each side.
Step into a lunge and reach both arms overhead as you come down. Keep your movements controlled and your chest lifted.
Jumping jacks + plié squats – 10 jumping jacks, followed by 10 plié squats.
Prefer lower impact? Swap the jumping jacks for step jacks.
Push-ups + plank to T – 5 push-ups, followed by 5 plank-to-T.
Do your push-ups from your toes or knees, whichever feels right for you. From your plank, rotate your body and reach one arm towards the ceiling, alternating sides.
Sumo squat + front kicks – 10 total.
Take a wide stance with your toes turned slightly out. Squat down, stand and kick one leg gently forwards, alternating sides.
Fast feet – 30 seconds.
Stay light on your feet and move them quickly. You can keep this low impact by stepping rapidly from side to side.
Air skipping – 30 seconds
Mimic skipping without a rope. Again, you can make this lower impact by stepping rather than jumping.
Core finisher
Right side plank with hip dips – 30 seconds.
Switch sides and repeat for 30 seconds.
Bicycle crunches – 30 seconds.
If either movement doesn’t feel comfortable, swap it for a simple plank, dead bug or another core exercise you enjoy.
1-minute cool-down
Bring your heart rate down gradually with a minute of easy movement. Try:
- Step touches
- Gentle side taps with an overhead reach
- Walking around the room
- A little more dancing, obviously
2-minute stretch
Finish with a couple of minutes of gentle stretching, focusing on the muscles you’ve just worked. Don’t force any stretch – you should feel a comfortable pull rather than pain.
Are you pregnant? If you’ve had a BFP (big fat positive on a pregnancy test), congrats! Just bear in mind, this is a pre-conception routine, not a pregnancy workout. Some of the movements here – particularly jumping exercises, deep or dynamic movements and certain core exercises – may need to be modified as pregnancy progresses.
Once you’re pregnant, speak to your midwife, doctor or a qualified pre/postnatal exercise professional about adapting your routine, or switch to a pregnancy-specific workout designed for your stage of pregnancy.
