Ovulation Calendar Basics
The Ovulation calendar is one of the tools you can use to determine your fertile days.
Knowing the pros and cons however can prove helpful in getting the maximum benefit from these calenders.
But
wait- is it ovulation calender or calendar?The correct spelling is
ovulation or fertility calendar. A calender is actually a machine used
in making cloths! Many women make the error of using calender in the
place of calendar. Just a simple relevant comment.
I have
condensed some elementary information regarding the use of an ovulation
calender that every women should know before ever using any of them.
Ovulation Calendar And Fertile Days
Fertility hovers around ovulation. The egg has a lifespan of about 12 to 24h so that is the critical timeframe for pregnancy to occur. From the basics of the menstrual cycle, you can calculate the approximate time of ovulation. Since this is hardly accurate, about 2 days are usually added before and after this date to give a period of days during which ovulation is likely to occur.
When
these days are presented in the visual form of a calendar, women can
easily plan when to have( or even avoid) intercourse to maximize the
chances of a pregnancy. These ovulation calendars can also be very
helpful to guide women who will be using the ovulation predictor kits
to know when to start testing.
Are the terms ovulation calendars, predictors and calculators somewhat confusing to you? You may want to visit ovulation period calculator to get these terms straight and learn more about the ovulation calculator also.
What I Need To Generate My Ovulation Calendar?
There are two methods you can use to generate an ovulation calendar-
simple calculation or by using a computerized process. Whatever method
you will use, there are three features you should know about your cycle
to generate a calendar. The more precise and accurate you are, the
better your predictions will be. Note that a computerized program will
not by-pass any errors you might make with any of these. If you make a
mistake or give less accurate data, the computer will produce less
accurate ovulation calendar too.
- The length of your cycle. The
number of days between the first day of your periods to the day before
the first day of the next period gives you the length of your cycle. You may have to keep a diary for this for about three months to have an average length. The
first day or Day 1 of your cycle is the first day of your periods. Most
women will have their cycle lengths varying by 0 to 2 days. That is
about 29-30, or 27 or 31 days etc. The normal length is 21 to 35 days. - The length of your luteal phase.The luteal phase length
is the number of days from the day of ovulation to the day before your
menses.You will need to use a fertility
chart or ovulation predictor kits for this. The normal is about 12 to 16 days
and does not usually vary from cycle to cycle for each woman. If you
have not yet figured out your length using the methods above, you can
use an average of about 14. - The regularity of your cycle. A
regular cycle ideally should have little variation from cycle to
cycle. If the length of your cycle varies by more than 10 days, that is
an irregular cycle. For the case of the ovulation calender and
predicting ovulation, you can consider your cycle regular if it varies
by less than about 3 days from cycle to cycle. I would suggest you
consider your cycle irregular if it varies by more than 5 and above. For
example your cycle this month is 25 days and next month is 31 days.
These differences can make the use of an ovulation calender difficult.
Nevertheless, even in the cases of irregular cycles, you can also
determine what is your shortest and longest cycle lengths and calculate
the range of fertile days. The usual problem with irregular cycles is
that you cannot tell what length the current cycle will have at the
beginning of the cycle. This also makes determination f the ovulation
date difficult.
Methods To Generate An Ovulation Calendar
As started above, you can do it yourself( manual method) or use a computer program.
The Manual Method
This little exercise will be very helpful in getting you familiar with the ovulation calender.You only need to calculate your approximate date of ovulation
and add some few days to get a range. That is it, you have your
ovulation calendar!
Approximate ovulation date = Cycle length – Luteal phase length( or 14 if you don’t know it)
Example:
if your cycle length is 30 days and your luteal phase is 16 days, then
the likely date of ovulation will be 30-16 = 14. So on Day 14 of your
cycle, you will likely ovulate. Hey, this is not the 14th of the month
but Day 14 of your cycle! So counting from the first day of your menses,
you will ovulate on the 14th day.
Since you cannot be very sure,
you may want to add about 2-3 days before and after this date to give
you a range of days where you have the highest chances of ovulating and
hence your fertile period. For the example above, adding 2 to 14 gives
16 and subtracting 2 from 14 gives 12. So the range is Day 12 to Day 16.
You can then go to the paper calender and count the days, marking Day
12 to 16 in red or another color to indicate your fertile period for
that month. That is your ovulation calender. In fact some women like
keeping it in a place where their partners can easily see too!
Using a computer software.
The computerized process takes away the little math above. Why
go through the headache of the calculations above every month? There are two types
of softwares available on the internet. There are those you can use
online and those you can download and use with your computer or mobile
device. Some of those you can download are free and others charge a few
bucks. Choose based on the visual appeal of the image to you, what data
they use and if you are willing to pay or not. Some online tools will
require you to sign in to have access.
Caution with softwares
Programs that utilize your luteal phase length are going to be more
precise that those that just assume it is 14 days. So the best programs
will use the length of your cycle, the first day of your past menses and
the length of your luteal phase. Beware of using
results for several months generated by one set of data you put in.
Example, you put in your information and it gives you the results for
the next three months. That assumes you are a machine with an ideally
perfect cycle, which is usually not be the case.
Update regularly
If you use a software,
please always update the information at least every month and not just
put in the data and stick to the results you get for the next 3
months. Print the results of the ovulation
calendar for one month only. That will make you more likely to update
the information before printing the result for the following month.
Do a preliminary search to identify one ovulation calendar program you
would like to use and stick with it. It is not advisable to use
different programs each cycle. This is one advantage of having a program
downloaded to your computer so you conveniently use it each time you
need it. You can also bookmark the online program page you would like to
use for easy future use.
Some Softwares
I have personally looked at only a few programs. I provide the
listing below for your review only. Use the information I have presented
above to make a better choice of a program you will want to use.
Free online tools to use
- Ovulationcalendar.netUses
luteal phase length and does not require any sign in to use. Good
visual display of results but does not have a good print option
available. Otherwise a good free choice. - Americanpregnancy.org calendar No sign in required; does not use luteal phase length.
- Mymonthlycycles.com calenderOtherwise good with visual appeal and other related information. Free account sign in required to access more options.
- WebMD calenderRequires login with a free account
Softwares for download to your computer
You
will not need to always go online for a search. You need to have your
own computer however and most of them are paid program.
- Ovulation Calendar. Good interface and easy to use. 45 days free trial version available. Costs $24.95
- Many other options can be found at this webpage I
have not reviewed them personally and you will have to do so using the
guides I have presented above if you have to purchase any.You can also google for more free softwares or search sites like download.cnet.com
If you have any questions regarding the interpretations of the results from any program, you may use the Contact form to ask your questions. Ofcourse not technical issues with the softwares;you should address such to the webhost of the program.
Return From Ovulation Calendar To Menstruation Home
Leave a Reply