Posted by Danielle Fox
on September 17, 2026
Read time: 3 minutes
It starts before you start trying
Here's the thing nobody tells you: conception doesn't begin the month you start trying. Both eggs and sperm take around three months to fully mature before they're ready for fertilisation, which means the habits you build today are shaping the cells you'll actually be working with a cycle or two from now.
"Those three months before a positive pregnancy test are much busier than you might think," says Alison Hall, OVA's Director of Nutrition. "The egg is maturing and getting ready for ovulation, and sperm cells are being produced too. That gives us a real window of opportunity to build up nutrient stores for the journey ahead. What we do now matters, not just for a healthy pregnancy, but the science shows this window may shape our children's health well into adulthood."
You don't need to overhaul your entire life overnight. You need a handful of habits, done consistently, for about 90 days.
1. Eat like it's a Mediterranean summer
Nutrition is the habit that does the most heavy lifting, for both partners. A Mediterranean-style way of eating - think oily fish, leafy greens, olive oil, whole grains, legumes - is consistently linked to better fertility outcomes.
- Colour on the plate: tomatoes and watermelon for lycopene, carrots and sweet potato for beta carotene - both linked to healthier sperm morphology and motility.
- Omega-3s: oily fish, walnuts and seeds, associated with improved egg and sperm quality alike.
- The key players: folate, choline, vitamin D, zinc, selenium and CoQ10 all show up again and again in the research on reproductive health.
- Cut back: ultra-processed food and added sugar can disrupt insulin and hormone signalling, which is exactly what you don't want when you're trying to regulate a cycle or support ovulation.
"There is a persistent myth that a generally healthy lifestyle is enough," Alison adds. "Baseline health matters enormously, but the preconception phase has specific nutritional demands that diet alone often cannot meet."
2. Protect your sleep and your stress levels
This is the habit most people skip, and it's the one that quietly undoes the rest. Reproductive hormones reset overnight, so 7–9 hours isn't a nice-to-have here, it's a non-negotiable. Chronic stress and elevated cortisol can interfere with ovulation timing and hormone signalling too, so even ten minutes of deliberate wind-down a day makes a big difference.
3. Move, but don't punish yourself
Walking counts. Truly. Moderate, regular movement supports blood flow and hormone balance, while extreme or high-intensity training can work against you if that's not already your baseline. This is a build phase, not a bootcamp.
4. For him: the habits that make or break sperm quality
Fertility is a team sport, and sperm is far more sensitive to lifestyle than most people realise and the good news is it also regenerates in around three months, so changes here work fast.
"Studies have shown that in the last 40 years average sperm counts have dropped from 100 million per ml to an average of 48 million per ml," says Dr Anand Patel, OVA's Medical Advisor and specialist in Men's Health. "As we develop a further understanding of why this happens in the first place, we can learn from findings and then make adjustments where we can to help with our sperm health and help to slow down this decline."
His practical list:
- Stay cool: skip the hot baths, saunas and heated car seats, and go easy on the cycling.
- Lose the phone-in-pocket habit: keep it in a jacket or bag, not against your body.
- Loosen up: tight underwear raises testicular temperature, which can lower sperm production.
- Cut the plastic: don't heat food in plastic containers or cling film, and swap to glass or steel bottles where you can.
- Stay hydrated: dehydration reduces semen volume, making it harder for sperm to do their job.
- Drop smoking, vaping and excess alcohol: the single biggest lever most men can pull.
"For people who are unable to optimise their sperm health through their eating habits, brands like OVA are paving the way for people to take control through supplementation of vital vitamins and nutrients," Dr Anand adds, "which can help in supporting male hormonal health and maximising sperm production and quality."
5. Time it, but don't let timing take over
Once the daily habits are in place, timing is the final piece. "Timing is key and it's important to keep track of your cycle so you know when you're most likely to be fertile," explains Dr Anand. Most people's fertile window falls around 10 to 16 days before their next period. A few practical notes from him: choose a fertility-friendly lubricant if you need one, as some regular lubes affect sperm motility, and don't overthink positions — sperm are, in his words, "built to swim."
His last piece of advice matters as much as any supplement: "Most importantly don't forget to have fun and play around to see what works best for you." Stress itself can disrupt hormones, libido and cycle regularity, so protecting the relationship underneath the trying-to-conceive is its own lifestyle habit.
6. Add a prenatal - for him & her.
A good quality prenatal for him and her rounds out everything, covering the nutritional gaps that even a genuinely good diet often can't close on its own. Both OVAHer Fertility & Pregnancy Support and OVAHim Advanced Sperm Support are formulated to sit alongside each other during the key preconception window.
OVAHer built around 26 nutrients including Choline, Folate, high-strength Vitamin D and Magnesium to support egg quality and ovarian reserve in the run-up to conception, implantation and foetal development through pregnancy, and hormonal recovery postpartum.
OVAHim uses 27 bioavailable nutrients formulated to enhance sperm motility (speed), count (volume) and morphology (shape), alongside supporting energy levels, immune function and healthy testosterone.
