{"id":73,"date":"2021-03-30T09:55:47","date_gmt":"2021-03-30T13:55:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.oviahealth.com\/guide\/73\/what-to-track-when-trying-to-conceive\/"},"modified":"2025-06-11T09:58:35","modified_gmt":"2025-06-11T13:58:35","slug":"what-to-track-when-trying-to-conceive","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.oviahealth.com\/guide\/73\/what-to-track-when-trying-to-conceive\/","title":{"rendered":"What should you track when trying to conceive?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The average menstrual cycle is 28 days long, with ovulation occurring near day 14. But even for women who have very regular cycles, the day\u00a0that ovulation occurs may vary.<\/p>\n

Conception tracker? What to record when TTC<\/h2>\n

The majority of women don\u2019t have exact 28-day cycles, so ovulation and the fertile window<\/a> can be difficult to predict. Luckily, your body has certain ways of communicating when it\u2019s fertile, and Ovia Fertility has developed an algorithm that can accurately predict your fertile window and ovulation date, based on a few different metrics.<\/p>\n

Cervical fluid<\/h3>\n

Cervical fluid<\/a> is the fluid that your body produces to help (or block) sperm moving through your cervix and up to your fallopian tube where it can fertilize your egg. Cervical fluid changes in consistency throughout the cycle, becoming most \u201cfertile\u201d (helpful for a sperm\u2019s travel) during the fertile window and ovulation.<\/p>\n

Cervical fluid tends to be dry right after menstruation, then thick and clumpy, then more watery, and finally thin, clear, and stretchy as you approach ovulation. Tracking your cervical fluid throughout the cycle is an excellent way to tell when ovulation might be near.<\/p>\n

Basal body temperature<\/h3>\n

Basal body temperature is the lowest temperature attained by the body in the normal course of the day. It\u2019s best taken right when you wake up in the morning, before you are active and start heating up. Basal body temperature can be a key indicator of your ovulation date, as it will quite often spike in the 24-48 hours after ovulation, due to a rise in the hormone progesterone.<\/p>\n

Conversely, basal body temperature may dip a bit right before you ovulate, so tracking your temperature from cycle to cycle can help you anticipate the dip and\/or spike, and pinpoint your ovulation and fertile window.<\/p>\n

Symptoms<\/h3>\n

Symptoms are your body\u2019s way of communicating what\u2019s going on inside of you, including an upcoming fertile window and ovulation. Tracking and paying attention to your symptoms can be extremely helpful in narrowing down your fertile window.<\/p>\n

Certain symptoms, like backaches, cramps, and pelvic pain, are common indicators of ovulation<\/a>. There may be some discomfort when an egg is released from the ovary, generally on just one side. This is known as \u201cmittelschmerz\u201d pain, which is German for \u201cmiddle pain.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moods<\/h3>\n

Your moods can tell you a great deal about what is happening in\u00a0your body, similarly to how symptoms can. The data that we have collected has found that certain moods, like feeling confident or frisky, may be positively correlated with an upcoming ovulation. Though moods alone may not be able to indicate that you are fertile (especially if you\u2019re already a confident or frisky person to begin with!), but they can definitely contribute to and improve your fertility predictions<\/p>\n

Period<\/h3>\n

Ovia Fertility uses many metrics beyond period data to predict ovulation and the fertile window, but entering your period data is a good way to set up a baseline for your predictions. Tracking your period will let you know how your cycle length and luteal phase length change from cycle to cycle, which could be crucial for helping you get pregnant faster.<\/p>\n

Ovulation tests<\/h3>\n

Ovulation tests<\/a> can confirm whether you are currently ovulating, but they\u00a0can\u2019t tell you that you\u2019re about to ovulate, or already ovulated, only that you’re currently ovulating. It\u2019s\u00a0nice to have confirmation of ovulation, but it\u2019s important to track other metrics in combination with with ovulation tests to best predict your fertile window and ovulation so you can plan ahead.<\/p>\n

Predicting your ovulation and fertile window can be difficult, but Ovia Fertility makes it easy. Simply enter these data points above as often as you can, and let our algorithm do the rest!<\/p>\n

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