The best time of your cycle to try to conceive is during ovulation. It is during ovulation that your body will release an egg into the fallopian tubes where it has the potential to be fertilized by the man’s sperm. Ovulation lasts for approximately 24 hours, and an egg cannot be fertilized at any time other than during ovulation. Having said that, the days that lead up to ovulation are also good times to try to conceive.

To understand why ovulation is the best time of your cycle to try to conceive, you need to understand some things about how conception actually happens. After your ovaries release an egg into one of your fallopian tubes, you have roughly a day to see that egg fertilized if you wish to conceive. The sperm that you need to fertilize the egg, however, can already be in the body when ovulation begins. In fact, sperm can survive in the body for up to 5 or 6 days altogether. This means, then, that you will be able to conceive for about one week each cycle. While the chances of conception are highest if you have intercourse on the day that you ovulate, many couples who are trying to conceive will also have intercourse in the days leading up to ovulation.

Knowing when you are going to ovulate, then, is a significant part of trying to conceive. You will ovulate, each cycle, at 14 days prior to the start of your next cycle. This means that if you have a 28 day cycle, you will ovulate on day 14. If you have a 30 day cycle, you will ovulate on day 16. If you have a 28 day cycle, you would start having intercourse on day 8 or so, making sure that you also have intercourse on the day that you ovulate, day 14 of your cycle.

There are also many tools available, from ovulation predictor kits (OPKs) to fertility tracking software that can help you identify when it is during your cycle that is the best time to try to conceive.

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