Difficulty in Getting Pregnant - The Weight-Fertility Connection

If you are experiencing difficulty in getting pregnant, you are not alone. In fact, according to the NCHS (National Center for Health Statistics), you are one in about 6.1 million women between the ages of 15 to 44 who have trouble getting pregnant.

Infertility can be caused by so many different factors, even male infertility. Though some of these hurdles may be more complex to get over, one hurdle is not: your weight.

Being underweight or overweight can be very hindering in your attempt at conceiving. Being overweight has been linked to so many health risks, such as heart problems, diabetes, and cancer. What many people do not realize is that it has also been linked to infertility.

For many, extra weight will come off if you do two things:

1. Eat less and eat healthy

2. Get more physical activity

In fact, one study* showed that being overweight and having a sedentary lifestyle increases your chance for infertility. This study concluded a person may increase their risk of conceiving by 7% for each hour per week of physical activity.

There are some steps you can take if you are overweight and having difficulty in getting pregnant! Once you have determined to choose a healthier lifestyle, follow these steps to achieve a healthier weight:

• Take more steps...literally! Just taking the stairs instead of the elevator, parking far away from the store, and taking a short walk around the block all add up to more calories burned in a day.
• Stop drinking calories. Other than milk or small servings of juice, you should not be drinking many calories. Calories found in sodas, coffee drinks, tea, and alcohol are not nutrient-dense and will not fill you up.
• Cut back or cut out calorie-dense, high-fat foods. If you are a mayonnaise or cheese lover, you could save a lot of calories just by cutting back! There are many foods such as French fries, high-fat meats, and butter that are high in calories and can be replaced by healthier versions such as baked potato, leaner meats, and olive oil.
• Do NOT go on a fad diet! Yes, you will probably lose weigh. The problem is, you will most likely not be able to sustain the diet for life. Make healthier food choices and watch portions in order to have a healthy lifestyle.
• Lift weights. Weight training is not just for the bodybuilders! Weight training will help you build lean muscle mass, which will not only make you look more fit, but also will cause your body to be more efficient at burning calories. Your metabolism will thank you!
• Never, never give up! The key is to always see each day, even each meal as a fresh start. Do not get discouraged if you get "off-track," just keep moving forward!

By losing excess weight and making healthy lifestyle changes, you will not only improve your chances of conceiving, but also enjoy many other health benefits. You will decrease your risk for many diseases, be at a lower risk for difficulties during pregnancy, and have more energy for motherhood one day!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Christen_Ferster

How to Stay Fit While Pregnant

Although women are happy to carry their child inside their tummy, it is unavoidable that they also feel some sort of insecurity about their appearance. There are a lot of physical changes during pregnancy that makes women feel bad about their appearance and the most obvious change is the weight issue. Most pregnant women tend to gain excess weight which should not be the case because you can stay fit while pregnant.

Pregnancy doesn't have to be a difficult stage for women when it comes to their appearance because you can be beautiful and stay fit while pregnant. It is a common notion that pregnant women are fat and unattractive but taking care of yourself to look good has nothing to do with pregnancy. Pregnant or not, women can be beautiful.

Here are some tips to stay fit while pregnant:

Mind your weight. Consult your doctor about the necessary weight that you have to gain and monitor your weight. Ask advice on how to maintain the ideal weight and stay fit during pregnancy. You also have to know that overweight women are at risk of having preeclampsia or high blood pressure. If you are overweight, you also have the tendency to have delivery problems and might end up delivering through caesarean section. It is better to maintain a healthy weight not just to look good and stay fit while pregnant but also to avoid health problems.

Stay active. Even if you are pregnant, it is not an excuse to just sit at home and avoid physical activities. You also need to exercise. There are moderate exercises and physical fitness activities that you can do. Your doctor can recommend what physical activities are safe for you and your baby. You just have to know your limitations and you know when to stop. Safe physical activities will help you stay fit while pregnant.

Do not overeat. Pregnancy is not a license to eat all you can anytime you want. It is not a reason to eat more than what is needed to nurture your unborn child. Gaining too much weight could result to pregnancy or delivery problems. Eat a healthy diet including fresh fruits, vegetables, protein, dairy products and whole grains. Avoid junk foods and processed foods.You can stay fit while pregnant if you have the discipline and you are willing to do the right things.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Gerry_Restrivera

Tips On Getting Pregnant

If you're like most women, you have probably spent a good portion of your adult life trying not to get pregnant. And you have probably received lots of information from various sources (friends, family, school) on just how to accomplish this. I'm sure you imagined that when the time came that you actually wanted to get pregnant, it would be quite an easy task. That tips on getting pregnant would be the last thing you would need. Simply stop using any precautions, ie. birth control, and that should do it!

Well, as it turns out, it is not always so simple. Yet most women have much more knowledge about how to avoid getting pregnant than how to actually get pregnant. You probably never thought you would need any tips on getting pregnant, but the truth is it might not "just happen" unless you get some good information first.

If you ask your friends for tips on getting pregnant, most will just tell you to have a lot of sex. This is definitely a good start, but the number one mistake that couples make when trying to get pregnant is improper timing of intercourse. One of the biggest reasons that occurs is because many women have the mistaken idea that they ovulate on day 14. This is a myth that has been perpetuated because most examples of an ideal menstrual cycle use a model of 28 days, in which case it is likely you would ovulate around day 14--but not definitely. However, many women do not have a perfect 28 day cycle, it can range from 24 days to 35 days or even a bit more or less. So you must never assume that you ovulate on day 14--that is one of the best tips on getting pregnant that you could ever get.

So how do you figure out when you do actually ovulate? Well, there are several methods that can help you accomplish this. One way is using a basal body thermometer and take your temperature each morning upon waking and keep a record for several months. You will start to see a pattern that shows a slight shift up in the temperatures each month. At the point that your temperature shifts up, you have just ovulated. Keeping this chart for a few months will give you a very good idea as to the approximate time of month that you in fact ovulate.

Another thing you can do is check your cervical mucus throughout your cycle to notice any changes. You will start to notice that your cervical fluid changes in consistency as you get towards the middle of the cycle. When the cervical fluid becomes clear and stretchy (like raw eggwhites), you are approaching ovulation.

If you are more interested in a scientific method, you can purchase ovulation test kits, a saliva test kit or a fertility monitor. Each of these note changes in your hormones that indicate when ovulation is approaching. These methods are more expensive, but can be very reliable.

Once you have pinpointed when you will be ovulating, you need to time intercourse so that you can have the maximum number of sperm "waiting" when your egg is released. One of the best tips on getting pregnant would be to have intercourse every day up through the day of ovulation as soon as you discover your ovulation is approaching through one of the methods outlined above. The reason is that the sperm can live for about 5 days inside a woman's body while waiting for the egg to drop. Once ovulation occurs the egg only lives for a short time. So having intercourse after you have already ovulated is probably too late! The egg will start to disintegrate within 12-24 hours of ovulation.

So in conclusion, if you are searching for tips on getting pregnant, concentrate your efforts on figuring out when you ovulate so that you do not waste the small window of opportunity to get pregnant that arrives each month. Once you have that figured out, you can time intercourse to maximize your chances of having the most sperm available and "waiting" when the day of ovulation arrives. Good luck!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Beth_Kiley