Sex one day before ovulation

Sex and ovulation: Timing intercourse for pregnancy

This article was last updated May 14, 2021.

Anyone who has been trying to get pregnant for more than a few months has probably heard comments from friends and family about all the "fun" involved in the process. (“At least you can have a good time trying!”) Remarks like this are usually well-meaning, but they can also put a lot of pressure on people to remain optimistic while waiting for that positive pregnancy test — even when the waiting feels more stressful than enjoyable.

Whether you’ve been trying for a while or are just starting to think about expanding your family, if your plan is to conceive without medical assistance, there's one tried-and-true way you can increase your chances of conception: by understanding the best days of the month for getting pregnant and timing intercourse around those days.

While your healthcare provider will likely talk to you about timed intercourse in your preconception visit, consider this article a leg up on the conversation.

Here are the biggest takeaways:

What exactly is timed intercourse? Planning sex around your “fertile window.” Your chances of getting pregnant increase five days before you ovulate, and you reach peak fertility on the day before and the day of ovulation.
How can you plan sex during your ovulation window? By tracking ovulation. The most effective way to track ovulation is with an ovulation predictor kit (OPK), like the Modern Fertility Ovulation Test. OPKs measure levels of luteinizing hormone (LH) in your urine. Because LH levels surge 24-48 hours before ovulation, a positive test result signifies that your LH may be surging — and that ovulation is likely around the corner.
How can you track ovulation without a test? By monitoring physical symptoms like changes in your cervical mucus and basal body temperature (aka fertility awareness methods) and by using an app that takes into account your previous cycles and presumed ovulation days.
What should you do if timed intercourse doesn’t help you conceive? If tracking signs of ovulation and timing intercourse hasn't helped you conceive within 12 months if you're under 35 and six months if you're over 35, talk to your healthcare provider.

What is timed intercourse?

Timed intercourse is exactly what it sounds like: carefully scheduled sexual intercourse around your fertile window or the time you’re most likely to conceive. It might be a pretty unsexy term, but it actually has a lot of success when done properly.

First of all, let's talk about the fertile window because it’s important to know yours if you want the best chances of getting pregnant:

Someone with ovaries has the highest chances of conception from about five days before they actually ovulate until the day of ovulation.
If sperm is ready to go in the reproductive tract during the time of ovulation, it’s possible to get pregnant.
Unlike the egg, which only lives for about 12–24 hours after it’s released from the ovary, sperm can live for about five days hanging out in the uterus and tubes — but only if cervical mucus is present. (Cervical mucus is produced by the cervix due to rising estrogen levels as the day of ovulation nears, and you can tell you've entered your fertile window when the mucus looks like egg whites.)

As Dr. Nataki Douglas, MD, PhD, a reproductive endocrinologist and the chair of the Modern Fertility Medical Advisory Board, explains it, "We recommend sex every 1-2 days especially during this fertile window [which comes before and during ovulation] because we know that sperm have a lifespan that's longer than the egg." Sex during this six-day window (every other day, as Dr. Douglas recommends) gives you the highest chances of sperm meeting up with egg.

Does more sex = better odds of conception? "Anything more frequent than that has not been shown to increase chances of conception and runs the risk of turning sex into a chore, which is the opposite of what it should be," says OB-GYN and Modern Fertilitiy medical advisor Dr. Jenn Conti, MD, MS, MSc.

How well does timed intercourse work?

Your chances of conception can be dramatically improved by the timing of intercourse — assuming there aren't other factors that impact fertility at play (like issues with the uterus, fallopian tubes, or fertility hormone levels, as well as male infertility). We know this in part because of our general understanding of the menstrual cycle and conception:

If you aren’t having sex during the fertile window, your chances of conception are zero.
Because the chances of conception increase in the five days before ovulation and peak the day before ovulation, you should be having sex within this window if you’re looking to conceive.
There’s a 42% (max) chance of conception on the day before ovulation, the most fertile day of your cycle.

In one 2003 study, women between the ages of 20 and 44 were taught how to use natural family planning (e.g., monitoring cervical mucus and basal body temperature) when they started trying to conceive (TTC) — meaning they were likely able to get a good grasp on ovulation and their fertile windows:

38% of the participants conceived within one month of TTC, 68% within three months, 81% within six months, and 92% within 12 months.
The American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) cites that a "healthy" 30-year-old has a 20% chance of conceiving each cycle, while a 40-year-old's chances are 5% each cycle.
While the 2003 study's results aren't broken down by age, the authors wrote that the difference in age between participants who conceived and who didn't wasn't statistically significant.
What this means: The conception rate per cycle may be higher for people who are paying close attention to the timing of ovulation and their fertile windows.

Timing intercourse during your fertile period is simple and cost-effective compared to other fertility treatments such as in-vitro fertilization (IVF), intrauterine insemination (IUI), or other methods of ovulation induction, so it’s good to try before moving on to other more expensive options — provided there aren’t other factors impacting conception.

Getting the timing right: How can you make sure you have sex during your ovulation window?

Many people have a lot of trouble actually knowing when their fertile window is open for business. So, we've rounded up a variety of ways you can pinpoint your fertile window — from the analog to the digital:

1. Ovulation predictor kits (OPKs): Ovulation predictor kits (OPKs) like the Modern Fertility Ovulation Test work by detecting a rise in luteinizing hormone (LH) in your urine. This LH surge occurs 24-48 hours before you ovulate, so it’s a biology-backed signifier of your fertile window:

Each OPK brand different, but some (threshold ovulation tests) will give you double blue lines or a smiley face when you’ve hit your LH surge, while others like the Modern Fertility Ovulation Test will actually give you a numerical value of your LH level, which lets you understand whether you’re at low, high, or peak LH as you approach your surge and two most fertile days.
Standard ovulation tests that give you a negative/positive result don’t work for 1 in 10 people with ovaries who have LH levels that fall outside of “normal” ranges.

Since not everyone has a textbook 28-day cycle with ovulation occurring on day 14, follow these steps to help you catch your surge:

Start taking ovulation tests a couple days after you stop menstruating, then keep using the OPK until you get a positive result.
For our Ovulation Test, we suggest you start taking tests 19 days before your next period. (After you’ve determined your cycle length, you can subtract 19 from that number and find the correct date.)
On testing days, you can take a test every 12 hours so you don’t accidentally miss your LH surge.
Take your ovulation test at the same time each day and don’t drink excessive fluids beforehand (so your urine won’t be too diluted to show accurate hormone levels).

2. Physical signs of ovulation: By monitoring physical symptoms from month to month and using what's called fertility awareness methods, you can track your ovulation even without a predictor kit:

The cervical mucus method tracks changes in the appearance, color, and consistency of your cervical mucus throughout your menstrual cycle to signal when ovulation is near and you’ve entered your fertile window.
Charting your basal body temperature (BBT) — or your body’s at-rest temperature — helps you identify the slight increase that comes at the time of ovulation. You can take your temperature each morning to learn if you’ve already ovulated. Because it only works after ovulation and because many factors can impact your BBT, tracking BBT isn't a very accurate way to predict your fertile window.

3. Cycle-tracking apps: You can also use an app that tracks your periods and ovulation to predict when your fertile window may arrive:

Typically, apps count the number of days between the last day you reported being on your period and the first day you report being on your next. Using that info, they can make a prediction of how long your cycle is and when ovulation might come.
Most apps aren't accurate on their own in predicting your fertile window — in one 2016 study, only three apps were found to be accurate in that respect.
Apps that log and track ovulation test results (like ours!) provide much higher accuracy. In fact, using products that measure LH helps you predict ovulation with 95% accuracy.
While you don't necessarily need to test LH if your cycle comes like clockwork and you always ovulate on day 14 of your cycle, if it’s important to you to accurately identify your fertile window, self-reporting your menstrual history in an app might not cut it on its own.

What if timing intercourse doesn’t work?

If you’re in your 20s or early 30s and have been trying to conceive for a year with no success, you're over 35 and have been trying for six months, or you have a medical condition such as endometriosis or polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) that can impact fertility, it's a good time to seek out help from your OB-GYN or fertility specialist. They can test your fertility to look into why conception hasn’t happened yet or help you figure out a treatment plan to make conception more likely.

To better understand your ovulation patterns and reproductive health before you start timing intercourse, Modern Fertility’s at-home tests and digital tools can help:

As we mentioned earlier, the Modern Fertility Ovulation Test lets you track your luteinizing hormone (LH) levels to predict your two most fertile days. With our test, you’ll get more insight than just a positive or negative result — you’ll be able to see your LH change daily and track low, high, or peak levels. This is key for understanding whether you're in your fertile window and approaching ovulation (when you have the highest chances of pregnancy). The tests works ~like magic~ with the free Modern Fertility App where you can scan and log your results using your phone’s camera, as well as track your periods and sex or insemination. Even if you have irregular cycles, our test strips can still help you keep track of your ovulation patterns.
The Modern Fertility Hormone Test measures the same fertility hormones that a doctor would test in a fertility clinic (for a fraction of the price) and helps you understand how your fertility is changing over time. Our Fertility Hormone Test gives you insight into the number of eggs you have and can help you identify red-flag issues — like PCOS or thyroid conditions — that could affect your reproductive health down the line. Each test is customized for you based on your birth control. If you’re not on hormonal birth control, you can test up to seven different fertility hormones.
Our Modern Fertility Prenatal Multivitamin, which helps you prep your body now for pregnancy whenever. It's designed to support your body before, during, and after pregnancy with 12 essential, doctor-backed nutrients. It comes in a sustainable monthly subscription with a (beautifully blue!) reusable glass jar — meaning no more forgotten refills or empty plastic bottles.
The Modern Fertility Pregnancy Test, which also works like magic with our app.

From tracking down your fertile window for timed intercourse to figuring out how your egg count is changing over the years, Modern Fertility is here to help you make every moment on your road to parenthood easier to understand.

This article was reviewed by Dr. Jennifer Conti, MD, MS, MSc.

Right Time For Sex , When Do You Ovulate ?

When are you more likely to conceive?

We’re talking about the 'fertile window’ – the days in a woman’s menstrual cycle when pregnancy is possible. The ‘fertile window’ depends on the length of the menstrual cycle, which varies among women.

The ‘fertile window’ is the day an egg is released from the ovary (ovulation) and the five days beforehand. Having sex (intercourse) during this time gives you the best chance of getting pregnant.

Ovulation Calculator

What day did you your most recent period start?

Number of days in your cycle Please select20 Days21 Days22 Days23 Days24 Days25 Days26 Days27 Days28 Days29 Days30 Days31 Days32 Days33 Days34 Days35 Days36 Days37 Days38 Days39 Days40 Days41 Days42 Days43 Days44 Days45 Days

Your ovulation day

Most fertile time

What is an ovulation calculator and how does it help you get pregnant?

This ovulation calculator or ovulation calendar can help you work out your most fertile time. These are the days you are most likely to get pregnant.

It can also estimate your due date if you do become pregnant during your next fertile days.

Others ways to help you work out when you're ovulating:

Notice changes in vaginal mucus
A few days before ovulation, you may notice your vaginal mucus becomes clear, slick and slippery, and feels a bit like egg white.
This is a sign that ovulation is about to happen. It’s the best time to have sex, as sperm travel more easily in this kind of mucus.
Use an ovulation predictor kit
You can use a predictor kit from a supermarket or pharmacy, to test your urine for signs of ovulation. If you start testing your urine a few days before the day you next expect to ovulate, a positive result means you are going to ovulate within the next 24 to 36 hours (one to two days).

Facts about timing

Ovulation is when a mature egg is released from the ovary. The egg then moves down the fallopian tube where it can be fertilised. If sperm are in the fallopian tube when the egg is released, there is a good chance that the egg will be fertilised, creating an embryo, which can grow into a baby.

Pregnancy is technically only possible if you have sex during the five days before ovulation or on the day of ovulation. But the most fertile days are the three days leading up to and including ovulation. Having sex during this time gives you the best chance of getting pregnant.

By 12-24 hours after ovulation, a woman is no longer able to get pregnant during that menstrual cycle because the egg is no longer in the fallopian tube.

There’s almost no chance of getting pregnant if you have sex before or after the fertile window (but if you’re not trying to get pregnant, don’t rely on this – contraception is your best option!).

How to know when you’re ovulating

Knowing when you ovulate can help you plan for sex at the right time and improve your chance of getting pregnant. You can keep track of your menstrual cycles on a chart, in a diary, or on a free period-tracker app on your smartphone.

To work out the length of your menstrual cycle, record the first day you start bleeding (first day of your period). This is day 1. The last day of your cycle is the day before your next period begins.

What is a ‘menstrual cycle’ and a ‘period’?
Some people think the ‘menstrual cycle’ and a ‘period’ are the same thing.
A period is when you bleed (or menstruate).
A menstrual cycle starts on the day when a period starts (day 1) and ends the day before the next period. A cycle’s length is considered normal if it’s between 21 and 35 days. They can vary between women and from one cycle to the next.
Working out your ‘average’ menstrual cycle length
If your menstrual cycles are different lengths (most women’s cycles are) you can work out your average cycle length.
The number of days in a woman’s menstrual cycle can vary month to month. Periods are not always regular. It can be useful to work out an ‘average’ cycle length, based on the length of three menstrual cycles, to estimate when you’re most likely to be ovulating.
If you add the number of days in three cycles and divide the total number by three, it gives you your average cycle length.

Example
Sarah tracked her last three menstrual cycles by counting the time from the first day of one period, to the day before the next period.
Cycle 1 was 28 days; Cycle 2 was 32 days; Cycle 3 was 27 days
28 + 32 + 27 = 87
87 divided by 3 = 29
So the average length of Sarah’s menstrual cycles is 29 days.
Working out your most fertile days
When you know your average menstrual cycle length, you can work out when you ovulate.
Ovulation happens about 14 days before your period starts.
- If your average menstrual cycle is 28 days, you ovulate around day 14, and your most fertile days are days 12, 13 and 14.
- If your average menstrual cycle is 35 days ovulation happens around day 21 and your most fertile days are days 19,20 and 21.
- If you have shorter cycles, say 21 days, ovulation happens around day 7 and your most fertile days are days 5, 6 and 7.
Your most fertile days are the three days leading up to and including the day of ovulation.
Some women have very irregular cycles or find it difficult to work out an average cycle length. This can make it hard to work out when ovulation happens. If it’s all too hard, having sex every 2-3 days covers all bases and improves your chance of getting pregnant.

Myth busting

MYTH: A woman can get pregnant any time of the month.
FACT: A woman can only get pregnant on a few days during her menstrual cycle.

Why?

Because eggs and sperm only live for a short time:

Sperm live for around five days.
Eggs can only be fertilised for around 24 hours (one day) after being released from the ovary.

Eggs and sperm need to come together at the right time for fertilisation to happen to create an embryo.

Getting the timing right

If you're trying to get pregnant, timing is everything. Dr Karin Hammarberg explains how to work out when you are ovulating and the right time to have sex to improve your chance of pregnancy.

What are the chances?

Having sex as close as possible to the time of ovulation increases the chance of pregnancy.

If a woman has sex six or more days before she ovulates, the chance she will get pregnant is virtually zero.

If she has sex five days before she ovulates, her probability of pregnancy is about 10 percent.

If she has sex on the day of ovulation, or the two days before, the chance of getting pregnant is around 30 percent.

These are average figures and depend on a woman’s age.

When does preconception health begin?

Professor Sarah Robertson, Director of Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide, highlights the key time before pregnancy that your health is most important to ensure your child has the best start to life.

How to know you are ovulating

Kerry Hampton, a registered nurse and fertility specialist, discusses the importance of fertility awareness, and how to determine your fertile window to improve your chances of conceiving.

References
- American Society for Reproductive Medicine, Optimizing natural fertility, https://www.reproductivefacts.org/news-and-publications/patient-fact-sheets-and-booklets/documents/fact-sheets-and-info-booklets/optimizing-natural-fertility/
- Berglund Scherwitzl, et al. (2015). Identification and prediction of the fertile window using Natural Cycles. The European Journal of Contraception and Reproductive Health Care, 20(5), 403-408. doi:10.3109/13625187.2014.988210
- Ecochard, R., et al. (2015). Self-identification of the clinical fertile window and the ovulation period. Fertility and Sterility, 103(5), 1319-1325.e1313. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2015.01.031
- Pfeifer, S., et al. (2017). Optimizing natural fertility: a committee opinion. Fertility and Sterility, 107(1), 52-58. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2016.09.029
- Stanford, J. B. (2015). Revisiting the fertile window. Fertility and Sterility, 103(5), 1152-1153. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2015.02.015
- Stanford, et al. (2002). Timing intercourse to achieve pregnancy: current evidence. Obstetrics and Gynecology, 100(6), 1333-1341.
- Stephenson, J., et al. (2018). Before the beginning: nutrition and lifestyle in the preconception period and its importance for future health. The Lancet, 10.1016/S0140-6736(18)30311-8 doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(18)30311-8
- Vélez, M. Pet al. (2015). Female exposure to phenols and phthalates and time to pregnancy: the Maternal-Infant Research on Environmental Chemicals (MIREC) Study. Fertility and Sterility. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2015.01.005
- Verón, G. L., et al. (2018). Impact of age, clinical conditions, and lifestyle on routine semen parameters and sperm kinematics. Fertility and Sterility, 110(1), 68-75.e64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2018.03.016
- Waylen, A. Let al. (2009). Effects of cigarette smoking upon clinical outcomes of assisted reproduction: a meta-analysis. Hum Reprod Update, 15(1), 31-44.
- Zenzes, M. T. (2000). Smoking and reproduction: gene damage to human gametes and embryos. Hum Reprod Update, 6(2), 122-131.

Page created on: 28/08/2018 | Last updated: 22/11/2022

When is a woman most fertile?

If you are a woman taking precautions to prevent pregnancy, or if you are thinking about pregnancy in some way in the future, the issue of fertility usually remains in the background.

The question of when a woman is most fertile has two aspects.

First, is the menstrual monthly cycle and the period when a woman is most fertile.

To figure out the arithmetic, a fertility calendar or an ovulation calculator will help. The second aspect of the question concerns biological age and the stage of life at which women are most fertile. In our article, we will look at the monthly cycle, the days that are the most fertile during this cycle, and various means of monitoring and predicting ovulation. This makes it possible to predict the time of maximum fertility with some accuracy.

Second , we look at the stages of fertility at various times in a woman's life and their impact on her ability to conceive.

It is well known that fertility peaks at age 20 and begins to decline after age 30; after 35 years, natural conception rates begin to drop sharply. However, in today's society, many women, for understandable financial and social reasons, choose to delay childbearing until the age of thirty. Thus, we are faced with the paradoxical situation where many women, who have long sought to prevent pregnancy in their younger years, find themselves in a situation where they begin to look for ways to increase their chances of conceiving.

When is a woman most fertile? What does the menstrual cycle show?

In a woman, the ability to conceive is maximum a day or two before and after ovulation. This is when the egg is released from the ovaries. You can calculate with a reasonable degree of accuracy when ovulation will occur, especially if your cycle is regular, anywhere between 24 and 35 days. Consider the start of your period (bright spotting) as the first day of your cycle, and the day before the next as the end of your cycle. Ovulation usually occurs 12-16 days before the start of the next cycle. Thus, if you have a regular 28-day cycle, then the indicator remains the same: ovulation occurs on the 12th-16th day. However, fertile time is not limited to these few days. Remember that you can get pregnant if you have unprotected sex at any time during the week before ovulation, as sperm can live in a woman's genital tract for up to seven days.

Fertility specialists generally advise that if you are hoping to get pregnant, it is advisable to specifically schedule contacts around this time, as it can be difficult to calculate the exact day of ovulation, and trying to have sex on a schedule can cause unnecessary stress and anxiety. For the best chance of getting pregnant as long as there are no underlying fertility problems, it is recommended to have intercourse every 2-3 days during your cycle. In addition, fertility calendars, an ovulation test, and self-monitoring for signs of ovulation can help predict the ideal time to conceive.

Menstrual calendar

It could be an old-fashioned pen and paper, a spreadsheet, or one of the many online calendars available. They are also known as ovulation calendars or ovulation calculators. They all do the same thing: keep track of your menstrual cycle dates and use the 12-16 day calculation outlined above to determine the days on which you are most likely to conceive.

Ovulation Tests

These are test kits that measure the level of luteinizing hormone (LH) in your urine. The essence of the measurement is to capture the surge in LH levels that occurs during your cycle a couple of days before ovulation. There are also tests that measure the same hormone pulsation but use a saliva sample. In these tests, saliva takes on the appearance of a fern-like pattern when it dries on glass. However, the most accurate analysis that allows you to track the LH peak is a urinalysis (rarely used in routine practice).

Self-monitoring for signs of impending ovulation

Self-monitoring includes taking temperature every morning after waking up, as well as monitoring the quality and consistency of vaginal mucus secretions. This must continue for several months so that ovulation can be tracked. This is the least reliable of the methods, because there can be many different causes of body temperature fluctuations (night rises, colds, blood sugar fluctuations), and in fact, many girls rightly find this procedure tedious and difficult to perform.

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Today's world is full of information: literally with one click, each of us can open the Universe and learn everything - from string theory to concert posters for the next week. It is all the more interesting that, having unlimited access to knowledge, we still live in myths - and sometimes they arise, including thanks to the Internet, replicating untruth and absurdity.

We have prepared for you a short “blitz” of six questions or myths about pregnancy and conception, so that you are fully equipped and do not believe the tales on the Internet.

Well... not exactly. Firstly, the idea of a “full examination” is a clear exaggeration, because there is no single list of tests that an expectant mother needs to pass. Ideally, visit a doctor three months before the end of contraception, get tested for STIs and antibodies to rubella. If additional examinations are required, you will be individually prescribed everything you need - including, probably, vaccinations that should be “updated”. As for alcohol and smoking, they are really contraindicated at the stage of pregnancy planning, so if you have these addictions, you will have to give them up. However, it should be remembered that smoking cessation applies to both electronic cigarettes and “passive smoking”, which can lead to dangerous consequences for the fetus.

Spoiler: no big deal. Do not panic and blame yourself for all mortal sins because of a glass of wine. With the recognized insecurity of alcohol, scientists have proven that a woman drinking 1-2 servings a couple of times a week should not harm the unborn child. For men, the allowable figures are slightly higher - 3-4 doses of alcohol per week. The main thing is to know the measure and not to overdo it.

There is, of course, a simplified formula for calculating the estimated due date: plus 7 days and minus 3 months from the date of the last period, but to be honest, it doesn’t work like that: the fact is that it is very difficult to “program” pregnancy and make sure that the child is born when you want. If you have a plan and are going to stick to it, be prepared for the fact that things can go wrong, if only because:

the duration of pregnancy is not 40 weeks, but 37-42 weeks, which means that you can easily get into a five-week “loop”, which will reduce the chances of fulfilling the plan to zero;

with regular sex, the probability of conception is not 1 time per month (exactly when you guessed it), but 1 time per year.

Nothing is impossible... However, it is worth clarifying the question a little: you can get pregnant only during ovulation (more precisely, shortly after it), but you can have sex, which will lead to a long-awaited pregnancy, on different days. Of course, on the days of menstruation, the probability is lower than on the days that precede ovulation, but on none of the days of the menstrual cycle this probability is not zero.

Let's just say that trying multiple times a day is a bad idea. Why? At least because ejaculation more than once a day worsens the quality of sperm, as a maximum - such perseverance and zeal can create tension in the relationship of partners. Doctors advise to have sex every 2-3 days throughout the cycle, and not try to guess the moment and throw all your strength into this short period.

Planning the sex of a child is an extremely prolific topic for myth-makers. Some believe that with the help of a special table that takes into account such indicators as the age of the father and mother, the month of conception, it is possible to accurately calculate the sex of the child. This "method" is anti-scientific and has nothing to do with reality.

Another myth is that you have to get pregnant on the day you ovulate to have a boy. Previously, scientists really believed that X and Y spermatozoa differ from each other (Y are faster), and the sex of the child is formed due to the first one that broke through the defenses of the female egg. If you want to conceive a boy, you need to have sex on the day of ovulation so that the Y-sperms responsible for the "male sex" have more time to get to the egg located farthest from the entrance to the uterus.

However, this myth does not stand up to criticism: the fact is that there is no difference between the X and Y chromosomes, which means that the sex of the child does not depend on which of the sperm reaches the egg first.