A Game Changer for Fertility Health

Two simple steps can make a meaningful difference:

1. Track your cycle.
   Regularity, symptoms, and changes can offer early clues about hormone health and ovulation.

2. Get checked early - even if you’re not trying for a baby.
   A fertility check can identify issues early and give you time to plan ahead in a way that fits your goals.

If you're unsure where to start, our expert fertility specialists can guide you through what’s relevant for your age and health.

Your fertility is a key part of your overall health, and understanding it early can be empowering. Whether you’re years away from wanting a baby or simply curious about what’s normal for you, a fertility check can provide valuable insights.

If something changes in your cycle or you have been trying to conceive for longer than 6 months, one appointment can offer personalised guidance and help you make confident, informed choices for the future.

A basic fertility assessment usually includes:

• AMH blood test gives an indication of ovarian reserve

• Pelvic ultrasound looks at the uterus and counts ovarian follicles

• Medical history reviews periods, symptoms, conditions, medications, and family history

These results can be reassuring, but they do need proper interpretation  especially for women in their 20s, since AMH peaks at around 20–25 and can be misleading without context. Speaking with a fertility specialist helps make sense of the numbers and what they do (and don’t) mean for your future. 

Egg freezing isn’t a blanket recommendation. But for women in their early-to-mid 30s who know they want children later, it can be a thoughtful option.

Things to consider:

• realistic expectations

• likely egg numbers per cycle

• what IVF would involve if using the eggs later

• procedure timelines and recovery

• costs and decisions around unused eggs (long term storage, donation, or disposal)

If you're considering egg freezing or want to understand whether it’s relevant for you, learn more here.

Endometriosis can be hard to navigate at the best of times, but the demands of elite sport add an extra layer of complexity. Athletes can’t always rest when symptoms flare, and finding time for surgery or recovery around training blocks and competition seasons can be challenging. Many push through pain or irregular bleeding because it feels like part of the job or because it’s not something that gets talked about openly.

These challenges aren’t unique to athletes, though. Painful periods or disruptive symptoms can affect anyone’s ability to function day-to-day, which is why early recognition and support matter.

Both conditions can impact physical comfort, consistency, and confidence:

• PCOS can lead to irregular or unpredictable cycles.

• Endometriosis can cause significant pain, heavy bleeding, and fatigue.

For athletes, this can influence training quality, recovery, and mental focus. For others, it can disrupt work, routines, and overall wellbeing. In every setting, having a clear diagnosis and support plan can make symptoms more manageable.

A major one. Low energy availability often linked to heavy training, busy schedules, or under-fuelling  can disrupt hormone function and menstrual cycles. RED-S (Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport) is common in athletes, but the underlying pattern can appear in anyone whose output regularly exceeds their intake.

RED-S occurs when the body doesn’t have enough energy to support training and basic physiological functions. It can affect hormones, bone health, menstrual cycles, and long-term fertility. Recognising it early  whether in a high-performance environment or everyday life  helps prevent longer-term complications.

By normalising conversations about cycles, encouraging open communication, and having a basic understanding of menstrual health. Tracking symptoms and monthly patterns can help spot changes early, making it easier for athletes to get support when they need it.

Yes and often more than people realise. Several key factors that can support better reproductive health over time:

Helpful habits:

• Avoid smoking or vaping (both can damage eggs and sperm)

• Avoid illicit drugs

• Limit alcohol

• Keep caffeine to around two cups a day

• Exercise regularly

• Eat a diet rich in antioxidants (fruit, vegetables, whole foods)

• Prioritise good-quality sleep

Supplements with some evidence:

• CoQ10 and melatonin for egg quality (particularly helpful as women get older)

• Vitamins C, E, zinc, and selenium to support sperm health

Lifestyle changes don’t need to be extreme small, consistent habits add up over time.

Emerging research shows that endocrine disruptors commonly found in some plastics, cosmetics, cleaning products, and non-stick cookware can affect egg and sperm health. 

If you’re trying to conceive, try to avoid plastics in your home environment, eat fresh food, wash produce well and use paraben-free products.

Male and female factors each play a role, and male factors are involved in roughly half of all infertility cases. Sperm health is influenced by lifestyle just as much as egg health  factors like smoking, heat exposure, alcohol intake, under-fuelling, and poor sleep all play a role. And yes, men have a biological clock too; sperm quality gradually changes with age.

For hetero-couples, fortunately most causes are readily diagnosed and most can be treated or overcome to help a couple conceive. If you've been trying for more than 6 months to conceive, book an appointment to see a fertility together with your partner.

Anxiety often comes from uncertainty not from the decision to wait itself. Having answers from an expert fertility specialist about your fertility can remove a huge amount of the “what if?” worry.

Understanding your ovarian reserve, cycle patterns, and any underlying conditions helps you make future decisions with clarity instead of guesswork. It also means you can plan around your career, study, travel, sport, or life goals with confidence, knowing you’re making informed choices rather than reactive ones.

Fertility is still treated as taboo in many environments  particularly competitive ones  which can leave women feeling isolated or unsure where to turn for support. That’s beginning to shift. More workplaces are introducing reproductive health policies, athletes are speaking openly about their experiences, and awareness campaigns are helping normalise the conversation.

Changing the culture doesn’t require oversharing; it starts with acknowledging that fertility is a part of health, not a private burden. When people feel comfortable raising questions early, they’re more likely to seek help when it matters. The partnership goes beyond education, alongside the fertility checks, the partnership includes workshops, webinars and podcasts to make fertility knowledge practical and accessible for athletes. When leaders, teams and organisations make space for these conversations, it helps dismantle stigma and shows women that their health is valued, not something to be hidden.

Most of us leave school knowing how not to fall pregnant  but very little about how fertility actually works. We’re rarely taught that cycles can signal underlying issues, that age impacts egg quality, or that reproductive conditions often go undiagnosed for years. Cultural discomfort, outdated curriculums, and limited access to expert-led information all play a part.

Improving fertility literacy gives women the tools to recognise symptoms early, understand what’s normal for them, and make empowered decisions long before fertility becomes urgent or stressful.

The luteal phase is the second half of the menstrual cycle, beginning after ovulation. During this time, the follicle that released the egg forms the corpus luteum, which produces progesterone. Progesterone prepares the lining of the uterus to support a potential pregnancy and can influence mood, sleep and energy.

If pregnancy doesn’t occur, progesterone levels fall and the next period begins.
A luteal phase that’s consistently shorter or longer than expected can sometimes signal ovulation or hormonal issues, which may be relevant when thinking about conceiving.

Many women experience physical or emotional changes in the lead-up to their period. Gentle exercise, good sleep, balanced nutrition and stress-reducing practices can help ease symptoms. Some evidence supports supplements such as vitamin B6, calcium, and magnesium.

If PMS significantly affects daily life or becomes severe, it’s important to seek medical advice. Hormonal contraception can help manage symptoms by stabilising hormone levels. Persistent or severe symptoms should always be assessed by a professional to rule out underlying conditions.

Cycle tracking doesn’t need to be complicated:

• Day 1 of bleeding = Day 1 of your cycle

• Record how long your cycle usually lasts and note changes in bleeding, pain, headaches, bloating, mood or energy

• Use a simple app with daily tick-box tracking

Over time, tracking can help you understand your own hormonal patterns, recognise when something changes, and provide valuable information for fertility specialists should you decide to seek support.