Fitness
Fertility Boost: The Power of Fitness/Fitness for Fertility: Exercise Your Way to Parenthood – ET HealthWorld
The path to parenthood is an incredible journey, with fertility playing a key role in making dreams of new life a reality. Discover how staying active can boost fertility and support a healthy start to this exciting chapter.
Embarking on the journey of parenthood is a profound moment marked by hopes, dreams, and the anticipation of bringing new life into the world. Fertility, the key to unlocking this incredible journey, can be a challenge for some couples. In today’s exploration, we delve into how physical activity plays a pivotal role in this narrative of fertility. Beyond its physical benefits, exercise fosters a harmonious balance within the body, nurturing optimal conditions for conception and supporting overall reproductive health. Let’s uncover how moderate physical activity not only promotes hormonal equilibrium and regular ovulation but also enhances the well-being necessary for embracing the joys of parenthood.The relationship between physical activity and fertility is an area of growing interest among researchers and healthcare professionals. Studies indicate that moderate exercise is generally associated with improved fertility outcomes in both men and women. The National Center for Biotechnology Information, in their 2023 study, elaborates on the critical factors for enhancing fertility, highlighting how regular moderate physical activity helps achieve optimal hormonal balance and promotes regular ovulation.
Physical Activity and Fertility
The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG) recommends that women planning pregnancy engage in 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week. This recommendation is grounded in evidence from the ACOG, suggesting that a combination of moderate aerobic exercise and strength training, performed two or more days per week, can yield significant fertility benefits. Similarly, Mahendru and Bhatt, in their 2013 research titled The role of exercise in improving fertility, Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, found that engaging in regular physical activity can enhance reproductive health by regulating menstrual cycles and improving hormonal profiles.
Moderate aerobic exercises, such as brisk walking, swimming, and cycling, are particularly beneficial for maintaining a healthy weight, which is closely linked to fertility. Being overweight or underweight can disrupt hormonal balance and ovulation, making it more difficult to conceive. Additionally, strength training exercises, including weight lifting and resistance band workouts, contribute to muscle strength and overall physical fitness, further supporting reproductive health. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) guidelines emphasize that incorporating strength training into a regular exercise regimen can enhance insulin sensitivity and reduce the risk of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a common cause of infertility.Flexibility exercises, such as yoga and stretching, are also recommended as part of a balanced fertility exercise regimen. These exercises promote relaxation and reduce stress, which can positively impact fertility. High stress levels have been shown to interfere with the menstrual cycle and reduce the likelihood of conception. The National Center for Biotechnology Information underscores the benefits of stress reduction techniques, including yoga and mindfulness, in improving fertility outcomes by lowering cortisol levels and enhancing overall well-being.
Weight and Fertility
Body weight, often reflected by Body Mass Index (BMI), has substantial effects on fertility. Mahendru and Bhatt highlights that a BMI below 18.5 is considered underweight, 18.5-24.9 is normal, 25-29.9 is overweight, and over 30 is obese. Both underweight and overweight conditions are linked to fertility issues. Obesity, in particular, is associated with hormonal imbalances that can affect ovulation and sperm production. Weight loss in obese individuals has been shown to improve fertility outcomes, including higher pregnancy rates and better sperm quality.
Exercise and Fertility
Regular physical activity is generally beneficial for overall health and can positively impact reproductive health. The ASRM underscores that moderate exercise helps maintain a healthy weight, reduces stress, and improves cardiovascular health, all of which are beneficial for fertility. However, Mahendru and Bhatt’s study cautions that excessive physical activity, particularly in women, can lead to menstrual irregularities and anovulation due to the energy deficit and hormonal disturbances caused by intense exercise.
For men, regular exercise can improve semen quality, but Mahendru and Bhatt note that excessive endurance exercise, such as cycling or running long distances, has been associated with reduced sperm quality due to factors like increased scrotal temperature and oxidative stress. A balanced approach to physical activity is recommended to optimize fertility outcomes.
Psychological Stress and Fertility
Psychological stress can adversely affect fertility in both men and women. The National Center for Biotechnology Information points out that stress can disrupt the hormonal balance necessary for ovulation in women and spermatogenesis in men. Mind-body interventions, such as yoga, meditation, and stress management programs, have been shown to improve fertility outcomes by reducing stress and promoting relaxation.
Environmental and Occupational Exposures
Exposure to environmental and occupational hazards can significantly impact reproductive health. The National Center for Biotechnology Information explains that factors such as exposure to pesticides, heavy metals, and endocrine-disrupting chemicals can affect both male and female fertility. Protective measures, such as using personal protective equipment (PPE) and minimizing exposure to hazardous substances, are crucial in occupational settings to safeguard reproductive health.
The role of Exercise in Preparing for Pregnancy
For those trying to conceive, it is advisable to start a fertility-focused exercise regimen at least three months before attempting pregnancy. This allows the body time to adapt to the new physical activity routine and achieve optimal hormonal balance. Mahendru and Bhatt note that this preparatory period is crucial for optimizing the benefits of exercise on fertility. It is important to note, however, that individuals with pre-existing health conditions should consult with their physician before starting any new exercise regimen. Personalized medical advice is crucial to ensure that the chosen activities are safe and appropriate for their specific health status.
The intensity and type of exercise are key factors to consider when developing a fertility exercise plan. While moderate exercise is beneficial, excessive physical activity can have the opposite effect. The ASRM’s practice guidelines caution against over-exercising and recommend maintaining a moderate level of physical activity that can be sustained consistently. The ASRM highlights that high-intensity workouts, particularly those involving endurance training or extreme weight loss, can disrupt hormonal balance and negatively impact ovulation.
It is essential to choose exercises that are enjoyable and sustainable. Consistency is crucial for reaping the fertility benefits of physical activity. Engaging in activities that one enjoys increases the likelihood of maintaining the exercise routine over the long term. Activities such as dancing, hiking, or joining a sports team can make the process enjoyable and less of a chore.
In addition to its direct impact on fertility, regular physical activity offers numerous other health benefits that can support a healthy pregnancy. Mahendru and Bhatt found that women who maintain an active lifestyle are more likely to experience easier pregnancies and recover more quickly postpartum. Exercise can improve cardiovascular health, enhance mood, and boost energy levels, all of which are important for a healthy conception and pregnancy.
Conclusion
A combination of a balanced diet, maintaining a healthy weight, regular moderate exercise, and minimizing stress and harmful environmental exposures is essential for optimizing fertility. Both men and women can significantly improve their reproductive health by adopting these lifestyle modifications. Future research should continue to explore the intricate connections between lifestyle factors and fertility to provide more comprehensive guidelines for individuals seeking to enhance their reproductive outcomes.
References
- National Center for Biotechnology Information. Impact of Physical Activity on Reproductive Health.
- American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Guidelines on Physical Activity and Fertility.
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Recommendations for Exercise in Women Planning Pregnancy.
- Mahendru, R., & Bhatt, A. (2013). The role of exercise in improving fertility. Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, 11, 66.
5. Physical Activity and Health. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 20(7), 600-605.
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While exercise is known to improve memory, scientists have mostly studied this effect by using behavioral tests or brain imaging methods like MRIs, says Michelle Voss, PhD, one of the study’s authors, a professor, and the director of the Health, Brain, and Cognitive Lab at the University of Iowa in Iowa City.
But she says these approaches can’t precisely identify where “ripples” originate, particularly in the deep brain structures like the hippocampus, a part of the brain strongly connected to memory and learning, she says.
The current study, published in Brain Communications, recorded electrical activity directly, using surgically implanted (intracranial) electrodes. “This allowed us to observe how exercise changes the brain’s memory circuits in real time,” Dr. Voss says.
20-Minute Bursts of Exercise Increase Brain Ripples
The participants performed a 5-minute warm-up and then rode a stationary bike for 20 minutes at a pace they could maintain. Researchers recorded their brain activity before and after the biking session.
The electrodes showed an increased rate of so-called sharp-wave ripples from the hippocampus and connections with cortical regions of the brain, which are involved in learning and memory.
“Sharp-wave ripples have long been known from animal studies to play a central role in memory,” Voss says, adding that recent studies using intracranial recordings in humans also support the importance of ripples for human memory.
“Our findings are the first to show that exercise can modulate these ripple signals in the human brain,” she says.
Researchers also observed that larger increases in heart rate during exercise were associated with larger changes in ripple activity in cortical networks, Voss adds.
What’s Already Known About Exercise, Memory, and Learning
Exercise helps build connections between neurons, which deepens and strengthens brain networks, Franssen says.
Physical activity also improves metabolism, which improves insulin sensitivity, helping blood sugar regulation and giving the brain a “more stable and reliable supply of fuel,” Dr. Perlmutter says.
“This is critically important because the brain is an energy-intensive organ, consuming roughly 20 percent of the body’s energy despite representing only a small fraction of body weight,” he adds.
The Research Has Limitations
Voss says researchers were careful to “exclude signals that contained epileptic activity. However, of course, we can’t statistically control for the accumulated effects of having epilepsy on the brain.”
The exercise-brain ripple patterns observed in the current study also closely match those observed in healthy adults using noninvasive brain imaging, such as MRI, she added.
“That convergence across very different methods is one of the strongest indicators that the effects are not specific to epilepsy, but reflect a more general human brain response to exercise,” Voss said.
Researchers also didn’t directly test memory performance, Voss notes. “While hippocampal ripples are strongly linked to memory processing in decades of neuroscience research, the next step will be to measure how exercise-related changes in ripples relate to memory performance in the same individuals.”
Future studies should also compare exercise with other everyday activities, such as sitting quietly or light movement, to determine how specific these effects are to aerobic exercise at the intensity that was studied, she says.
Satisfy Your Brain’s Exercise Craving
It’s never too early or too late to start exercising for brain health, Franssen says.
People of any age, from grade-school children to people in their nineties, can benefit from increased physical activity, Perlmutter says. “My recommendation is to consider taking advantage of the connection between physical activity and brain health across the entire range of human aging.”
Any type of exercise is great, Franssen says, but especially “repetitive behaviors,” like swimming, jogging, and walking.
“Sometimes we let the hugeness of putting in a huge fitness routine get in our way,” she says. “Having a little exercise snack every so often is also very important to improving cognition.”
Increasing our level of physical fitness leads to a bigger release of brain-boosting proteins following one session of exercise, a new study led by a UCL researcher has found.
The study, published in Brain Research, took a group of inactive unfit participants through a 12-week training programme of cycling three times per week and made them fitter. Researchers found as their fitness increased, so did the amount of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) released following exercise, resulting in improved brain function.
Just 15 minutes of moderate to vigorous aerobic exercise releases BDNF, a brain protein which is known to support the formation of new neurons and new synapses (connections between brain cells), and maintains the health of existing neurons. This is the first study to show that for unfit people, just 12 weeks of consistent training can boost the brain’s response to a single 15-minute workout.
The study, led by Dr Flaminia Ronca (UCL Surgery & Interventional Science, and the Institute of Sport, Exercise and Health), involved 30 participants – 23 male and seven female – taking part in the 12-week programme. To assess fitness levels throughout the programme, participants completed VO2max tests every six weeks, which measures the maximum rate of oxygen your body can consume and use during intense exercise.
BDNF levels were measured pre- and post-VO2max testing, alongside a series of cognitive and memory tests, while also measuring changes in brain activity in the prefrontal cortex – where executive functions such as decision-making, emotion regulation, attention and impulsivity are controlled.
By the final week of the trial, results showed that baseline levels of BDNF did not change, but participants did show a larger spike of BDNF following intense exercise, compared to how their brains responded to intense exercise before the 12-week programme. This was linked to improvements in VO2max (aerobic fitness).
Higher overall BDNF levels and stronger exercise-induced increases were also associated with changes in activity across key areas of the prefrontal cortex during attention and inhibition tasks, though not during memory tasks.
Overall, the results showed that increasing physical fitness can enhance the brain’s ability to produce BDNF in response to acute bouts of exercise, which can have a strong positive influence on neural activity.
Lead author Dr Flaminia Ronca said: “We’ve known for a while that exercise is good for our brain, but the mechanisms through which this occurs are still being disentangled. The most exciting finding from our study is that if we become fitter, our brains benefit even more from a single session of exercise, and this can change in only six weeks.”
Notes to editors:
For more information or to speak to the researchers involved, please contact: Tom Cramp, UCL Media Relations , T: +447586 711698, E: [email protected]
The research paper: ‘BDNF relates to prefrontal cortex activity in the context of physical exercise’, Flaminia Ronca, Cian Xu, Ellen Kong, Dennis Chan, Antonia Hamilton, Giampietro Schiavo, Ilias Tachtsidis, Paola Pinti, Benjamin Tari, Tom Gurney, Paul W. Burgess, is published in Brain Research, March 2026,
About UCL (University College London)
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Journal
Brain Research
DOI
10.1016/j.brainres.2026.150253
Method of Research
Experimental study
Subject of Research
People
Article Title
BDNF relates to prefrontal cortex activity in the context of physical exercise
Article Publication Date
4-Mar-2026
Media Contact
Tom Cramp
University College London
[email protected]
Journal
Brain Research
DOI
10.1016/j.brainres.2026.150253
Journal
Brain Research
DOI
10.1016/j.brainres.2026.150253
Method of Research
Experimental study
Subject of Research
People
Article Title
BDNF relates to prefrontal cortex activity in the context of physical exercise
Article Publication Date
4-Mar-2026
Tags
/Health and medicine/Human health/Physical exercise
bu içeriği en az 2000 kelime olacak şekilde ve alt başlıklar ve madde içermiyecek şekilde ünlü bir science magazine için İngilizce olarak yeniden yaz. Teknik açıklamalar içersin ve viral olacak şekilde İngilizce yaz. Haber dışında başka bir şey içermesin. Haber içerisinde en az 12 paragraf ve her bir paragrafta da en az 50 kelime olsun. Cevapta sadece haber olsun. Ayrıca haberi yazdıktan sonra içerikten yararlanarak aşağıdaki başlıkların bilgisi var ise haberin altında doldur. Eğer yoksa bilgisi ilgili kısmı yazma.:
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Keywords
Tags: 12-week cycling training program benefitsbrain plasticity and physical fitnessbrain-derived neurotrophic factor after exerciseeffects of aerobic exercise on BDNFexercise and neuron healthexercise-induced neurogenesisfitness level impact on brain proteinsfitness training for cognitive improvementimproving brain function through fitnessmoderate to vigorous aerobic exercise effectsphysical fitness and brain healthVO2max and brain function correlation
SOLE Fitness announces new additions to its home exercise bike range, with models including built-in screens, resistance systems, and notably, zero monthly subscription fees.
— SOLE Fitness has announced a new range of home exercise bikes aligning with its policy against mandatory monthly subscription fees – addressing a growing concern among cost-conscious fitness enthusiasts.
For more information, visit: https://www.soletreadmills.com/collections/bikes
The announcement comes as subscription fatigue intensifies across the home fitness market – where hidden costs of ongoing memberships have become a significant pain point for buyers. Many consumers now actively seek alternatives that deliver premium features without the financial burden of perpetual fees – and SOLE Fitness offers its range in direct response.
Technical capabilities across the range support the no-subscription experience through innovative design and robust hardware. For instance, SOLE Fitness cites the SB1200 exercise bike as a suitable option for its 10-inch touchscreen – including preloaded entertainment applications.
SOLE’s team notes that this particular model also incorporates 100 levels of adjustable magnetic resistance, offering a broad spectrum of intensity for diverse workout preferences. A 35-pound flywheel contributes to smooth, consistent pedaling motion, while the durable steel frame supports users up to 300 pounds.
Elsewhere in the range, SOLE Fitness offers options across recumbent, upright, and indoor cycling styles to accommodate different fitness goals and space constraints.
The LCR Recumbent Bike is an example of a comfortable seated design with back support, ideal for low-impact cardio sessions, coming with 40 levels of magnetic resistance. The B94 Upright Bike, meanwhile, delivers a traditional bike posture with 20 levels of resistance, suited for users seeking straightforward training without advanced touchscreen features.
Central to the value proposition is the SOLE+ App, which provides zero-cost online fitness classes to customers who own SOLE equipment. The app offers hundreds of home gym video tutorials ranging from basic to advanced routines – standing in contrast to platforms that charge separately for similar content.
As explained by SOLE Fitness, its overall range is engineered for smooth, silent rides through magnetic resistance systems, sturdy steel frames, and precision components that deliver a premium indoor cycling experience. Magnetic resistance eliminates the wear and noise associated with friction pads, while the structural integrity of the frames ensures stability during high-intensity intervals.
“Each treadmill is crafted to provide an unparalleled exercise experience, featuring robust motors, intuitive controls, and cushioned running surfaces for maximum impact absorption,” says a company representative.
Moreover, since the company’s product portfolio is designed to offer entry points at various price levels, customers have readily available access to select models that align with their own budget and training preferences.
Interested parties can browse the full selection at: https://www.soletreadmills.com/
Contact Info:
Name: Inquiries
Email: Send Email
Organization: SOLE Fitness
Address: 56 Exchange Pl., Salt Lake City, UT 84111, United States
Website: https://www.soletreadmills.com/
Release ID: 89185487
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