{"id":27136,"date":"2014-04-23T07:15:14","date_gmt":"2014-04-23T11:15:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=27136"},"modified":"2021-05-17T10:55:51","modified_gmt":"2021-05-17T14:55:51","slug":"how-exercise-affects-fertility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/fitness\/how-exercise-affects-fertility\/","title":{"rendered":"Exercise and Fertility: Are You Too Fit to Conceive?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Woman
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When Dr. Andrew Toledo\u2019s 32-year-old patient showed up at his office complaining of irregular periods and an inability to get pregnant two years ago, the Atlanta fertility specialist immediately asked about her exercise routine.<\/p>\n

As he guessed, she\u2019d spent the previous three months training hard for the Chicago Marathon. Even though she had recently completed several half-marathons, the increase in mileage had put just enough stress<\/a> on her body to make her menstrual cycles go haywire. And if she didn\u2019t ovulate regularly, she wouldn\u2019t be able to get pregnant.<\/p>\n

So Toledo, chief executive officer at Reproductive Biology Associates, gave her the speech he\u2019d given to the growing number of female athletes he\u2019d seen over the years: \u201cIf you really want to get pregnant, you\u2019ve got to cut back<\/a> on exercise. You can\u2019t do both,\u201d he said.  Since he was also a runner and had competed in the Atlanta Marathon<\/a> in 2002, he also gave her the option of taking a break from baby-making until the race was over. <\/p>\n

She chose to stop training and became pregnant a couple months later. \u201cIt can happen quickly,\u201d he explained. \u201cIf you don\u2019t take your body off a cliff, it will heal itself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Too Much of a Good Thing?<\/h3>\n

\u201cExercise is a great thing for anyone trying to get pregnant \u2026The problems arise when you take it to the extreme.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

At 5\u20195\u201d and 120 pounds, Toledo\u2019s patient was on the lean side, but she wasn\u2019t technically underweight (defined as having less than 20 percent body fat), a known cause of infertility among elite athletes, such as distance runners, ballet dancers and gymnasts. In fact, about six percent of infertility cases are due to being underweight<\/a>, according to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine.<\/p>\n

Rather, she fit into a murky but expanding category: healthy women who push their bodies just far enough that they disrupt their delicate hormonal balance, and their brain stops sending a signal to the ovaries to send down an egg to fertilize. The increased recognition of the relationship between endurance exercise and infertility brings up the question: Can being too fit hurt your chances of getting pregnant?<\/p>\n

Of course, doctors are reluctant to discourage women to exercise<\/a>, considering that six percent of infertility cases are caused by obesity<\/a>. \u201cExercise is a great thing for anyone trying to get pregnant,\u201d explains Toledo. \u201cIt improves blood flow to the uterus and ovaries, and makes you feel good. The problems arise when you take it to the extreme. You\u2019re subjecting your muscles and joints to constant pounding, and the body starts to break down.\u201d All the energy your body would have dedicated to getting pregnant gets redirected to healing injuries.<\/p>\n

A Norwegian population-based survey<\/a> of nearly 4,000 women under 45 found a clear link between exercise intensity and fertility. Women who were active most days were more than three times more likely to have fertility problems than inactive women. And those who exercised to the point of exhaustion were more than twice as likely to be infertile than those who engaged in less strenuous activities, according to results published in Human Reproduction.<\/i><\/p>\n

Men who want to be dads soon shouldn\u2019t sign up for the next Ironman, either. Research<\/a> shows that over-exercising can harm sperm production. That\u2019s not to mention the recent Spanish findings<\/a> that male cyclists who rode more than 180 miles a week had more strangely shaped swimmers. All that saddle time has been shown to cause unfriendly friction and overheated testes \u2014 hardly ideal conditions for optimal fertility<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Body Shut-Down<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s often a combination of genetics, not getting enough calories and being significantly underweight that causes women to experience ovulation problems.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

When your body is under so much physical stress, especially if you\u2019re not eating enough to compensate for the energy you\u2019re using, it goes into a starvation state. \u201cThe brain figures it\u2019s not a good time to have a baby, and the body and reproductive hormones go into shut-down mode,\u201d explains Karine Chung, M.D., a reproductive endocrinologist at University of Southern California Fertility in Los Angeles, who writes<\/a> about the effects of exercise on reproduction. \u201cThere are less extreme versions of this in people who aren\u2019t that underweight but have intense workouts multiple times a week.\u201d If they\u2019re missing periods, a condition known as amenorrhea<\/a>, they\u2019re at risk for infertility. Over time, the lack of estrogen that\u2019s usually produced as part of menstruation, can have long-term health consequences, such as osteoporosis<\/a> and eventually heart attacks<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Exercise itself doesn\u2019t cause infertility, stresses Raul Artal, M.D., chair of the department of obstetrics, gynecology and women\u2019s health at St. Louis University. It\u2019s often a combination of genetics, not getting enough calories and being significantly underweight that causes women to experience ovulation problems. In these cases, their cycles will become more regular once they reach a normal BMI<\/a> (more than 111 pounds for a 5\u20195\u201d woman). \u201cAs long as they have an adequate body weight, most women will ovulate just fine, even on marathon weekend,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n

\"Fertility
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Finding the Sweet Spot <\/h3>\n

Hoping to get pregnant but don’t want to slow down your training? Here are some tips to help you do both:<\/p>\n

1. Track your menstrual cycle.
\n<\/b>If you notice a significant change in the time in between your periods, especially if it coincides with your ramped-up training schedule, that may be a sign it\u2019s time to slow down, says Chung. Your period should arrive every 28 to 30 days on average, however it can range from 21 to 35 days. \u201cIf it\u2019s any shorter or longer than that, I\u2019d be worried you\u2019re not ovulating,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

2. Pee on a stick.
\n<\/b>It\u2019s a good idea to monitor your ovulation cycles to make sure your body is working as it should. Those drugstore tests will detect the surge of luteinizing hormone in your urine, which takes place right before ovulation, says Toledo.<\/p>\n

3. Consume enough calories.
\n<\/b>A 135-pound female with 20 to 25 percent body fat who runs an hour a day at moderately high intensity would need to eat a minimum of 1900 to 2000 calories a day to maintain fertility, explains Enette Larson-Meyer, PhD, associate professor of human nutrition at the University of Wyoming. Make sure your diet has adequate levels of fat and protein. And go easy on fiber<\/a>, which in large amounts can interfere with ovulation.<\/p>\n

4. See a fertility specialist.
\n<\/b>This is a no-brainer if you\u2019re having sexual intercourse regularly and haven\u2019t gotten pregnant within a year<\/a> (or six months, if you\u2019re over 35). Your doctor can help pinpoint any potential roadblocks and, in some cases, might prescribe medication to help you ovulate.<\/p>\n

5. Consider freezing your eggs.
\n<\/b>If making babies doesn\u2019t fit into your training schedule, there\u2019s also the option of putting some eggs on ice until you\u2019re ready to conceive. The choice is a personal one, but if that\u2019s the route you chose, be sure to freeze your eggs<\/a> when your fertility is at its prime, ideally before turning 35.  <\/p>\n

Most athletes have no problems getting pregnant. But just as you prepare your body for baby-making by taking folic acid and cutting back on drinking, keeping a moderate exercise schedule may be another item to add to your checklist.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Is over-exercising hurting your chances of getting pregnant? Read on for an in-depth look at the connection between extreme exercise and infertility.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46,"featured_media":27148,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,24,6],"tags":[288,217,289,233,232,144,82,108,347,372],"class_list":["post-27136","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cardio","category-exercise","category-fitness","tag-cardio","tag-disease","tag-exercise","tag-fertility","tag-hormones","tag-injury","tag-recovery","tag-running","tag-tax1family","tag-tax2fertility"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27136","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/46"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27136"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27136\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27148"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27136"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}