Women who train more than 7 hours a week at high intensity have reduced fertility rates, even with no medical suspicion. The first signs usually show up in your cycle (periods that get shorter, irregular, lighter or skip months), together with chronic fatigue, frequent injuries and lower libido.
A lot of TTC women miss in one of two directions: too sedentary, or training like an athlete. This page is about the second one. Moderate exercise lowers inflammation and regulates cortisol. Too much exercise does exactly the opposite: it raises cortisol, raises inflammation and, in extreme cases, can cause amenorrhea (your period stopping).
The reason sits at the top of your hormonal system. GnRH, produced by the hypothalamus, fires the pulses that tell the pituitary to release FSH and LH. Excessive exercise is one of the things that directly affects those pulses, alongside chronic stress, extreme weight loss and sleep disorders. When that happens and periods stop, it is called hypothalamic amenorrhea, and its listed causes are stress, excessive exercise and low weight.
Women training more than 7 hours a week at high intensity have reduced fertility rates, even with no medical suspicion. Athletes, CrossFitters and marathon runners have higher rates of hypothalamic amenorrhea.
If you only remember three, the book's own summary picks them: irregular cycles, chronic fatigue and frequent injuries.
The goal is not to stop moving. The book's ideal is moderate cardio 3 to 4 times a week plus light strength training twice a week, and that is where to bring your routine back to (the full weekly plan is on the exercise page).
Gaining weight is just as important as the opposite. Very lean women have reduced ovulation rates. Increase calories with quality food, lower your cardio intensity and focus on strength training. A BMI between 19 and 29 is the range associated with the highest fertility.
Moderate exercise helps him too, but professional cyclists and extreme athletes can see a reduction in fertility from trauma and scrotal heat. Saunas and very hot baths affect testicular temperature and sperm production.
This comes from Chapter 24 of Map to the Positive, in Station III (Optimization), the chapter on the right exercise at the right intensity. Station III treats exercise as one lever among several: nutrition, advanced supplementation, sleep and stress, his fertility and sex at the right time. Then it turns everything into an integrated 90-day plan.
Take 30 days. If it does not give you more clarity than everything you have read for free so far, ask for a refund and you get every cent back. We cannot promise you a pregnancy. We can promise you will not be guessing.
References: Mena GP et al. The effect of physical activity on reproductive health outcomes. Human Reproduction Update, 2019.