First and foremost -- I do not believe in magical silver bullets when it comes to healing. Anyone promising you a quick fix -- lose X amount of pounds in X amount of days and keep it off FOREVER, clear your acne with this one single product, get pregnant TOMORROW taking this one isolated thing -- is likely selling you something, playing on your fears and anxieties, and doesn't really understand how the body works.

Now, to be fair, I do have an online course that I sell, but the difference is that I do not purport to fix anything for anyone. I provide information that gives YOU the tools on how to heal your body, how to heal your hormones, and how to restore healthy periods, energy, libido, and optimize fertility. And I am very clear that what I offer and teach is NOT a quick fix. Click here to learn more about my course, The Hormone Healing Secrets!

I don't believe in the quick fix. I believe in the sustainable approach to healing, and the intentional restoration of the body for it to function as it was meant to.

I DO, however, believe in practical things you can start doing immediately. And the sprinkling in of these healthier habits, little by little, time over time, absolutely DO make a difference when applied with consistency.

When it comes to fertility, we need to take an honest look at how we are supporting our bodies on a daily basis to pave the way for healthy, regular, robust ovulation, conception, and maintaining of a pregnancy when it happens.

Fertility is multi-layered, and if you're struggling in this particular area, there is likely great nuance to your specific set of circumstances and scenario.

But, in general, one major thing I see in clients struggling with fertility challenges is .....

.........

.................

I'm sure you've NEVER heard me say it before ....... (if you're new here, welcome! I repeat a lot of the same concepts because they are just that important and amazingly impactful!)

UNDERNOURISHING.

Not Eating Enough!! Simply not consuming enough calories during the day.

Think about your car. Your car does not run efficiently if you don't put gas in it, and if you don't maintain it with oil and lubricant and all the stuff that goes into maintaining your car.

Your body is the most elegantly complex, wildly intricate, insanely smart bio-computer that ever existed, and simply stated -- IT WILL NOT WORK EFFICIENTLY IF IT IS UNDER-FUELED.

Here's the fun part.

I can't tell you "how many" calories to be eating each day. I can't tell you "exactly" the foods that will work for your body and being. Even with clients, I never give blanket advice, strict metrics, or hard numbers they need to meet each day. This drives some people crazy haha. But I love this approach because it FORCES us to get into our bodies, to understand what OUR unique set of bodily needs are, and to take an intuitive approach to eating and nourishment.

(Spoiler alert:: getting to know your body and yourself IS THEE BEST WAY to find the things that are going to work best for you, make the biggest impact on you, and be sustainable for you in the long run.)

So. I don't know how many calories you "need" throughout the day. But I do know that many many women struggling with fertility are very likely undernourishing, under consuming calories, and many are coming from backgrounds of restriction, yo-yo dieting, eliminating whole macronutrient groups, frequent cleansing / detoxing, and have played around with fasting.

A simple fix you can begin implementing today to improve your fertility is simply to:

Eat. More. Food.

When you undereat, you signal to your body that there is a famine, ie: is not enough energy to go around to satisfy YOUR needs as a living, breathing, moving, thinking sentient being... AND the life of an egg cell that will eventually meet with sperm to become a new little zygote, that becomes an embryo, that becomes a fetus, that becomes ANOTHER full grown human that is ALSO a living, breathing, moving, thinking sentient being.

Simply stated, not eating enough = energy conservation. What happens when we go into energy conservation mode? The body prioritizes things that are NOT necessary to survival (in this particular example: ovulation and conception).

Under eating means slowed metabolism. When the metabolism is slowed, ovulation is negatively impacted.

When the body thinks its in famine, stress hormones are mobilized to recruit glucose from the tissue stores into the blood stream, because its not getting the glucose it needs from food, so it must get it from somewhere! And when we have a bunch of circulating stress hormones, guess what happens:::

These stress hormones compete with sex hormones, and the hormones involved in reproduction. And, spoiler alert::: your body will ALWAYS prioritize your survival over that of healthy robust ovulation, conception, and maintaining a healthy pregnancy.

Not enough food, read: not enough energy, not enough fuel, mobilizes stress hormones, which compete with reproductive hormones, which prevent optimal ovulation, a healthy luteal phase, and subsequent conception.

Improve Your Fertility By Eating More Food

Protein / Fats / Carbohydrates at every meal

Eat Breakfast

Eat Lunch

Eat Dinner

Eat a mid-morning snack between breakfast and lunch

Eat a mid-afternoon snack between lunch and dinner

Eat a little something about a half hour before bed

Make sure every meal you eat has a balance of all 3 macronutrients

Make sure every snack you eat has a combo of protein + carbohydrates (click here for some of my favorite easy snack ideas!)

Sprinkle in nutrient rich beverages to boost your calorie and micronutrient intake (I like a milky drink in the morning, and sun tea in the afternoon. Click here for some of my favorite nourishing beverages)

Eat nutrient dense foods like: animal meats, egg, high quality dairy, shellfish, canned fish, ripe in-season fruits, well cooked vegetables, high quality fats like butter, tallow, ghee and coconut oil (Click here to learn more about nutrient dense foods)

If you're a woman trying to conceive,

If you're a woman struggling to ovulate regularly,

If you're a woman struggling to ovulate optimally,

If you're a woman struggling with a short, symptomatic, PMS-ey luteal phase,

If you're a woman who is undergoing fertility treatments or assisted reproductive technology,

Or if you're a woman struggling to maintain a pregnancy

Try to simply eat more food throughout your day. More nutrient dense, balanced meals, spread throughout your day in regular, consistent intervals, and see how things improve.

It's wildly underrated, this whole eating thing.

Eating enough, eating often enough, eating in a balance, and eating for optimal health -- try this simple shift, and see how this will absolutely translate to optimal fertility.

Yours In Abundant Health,

Xoxo

Emily 😊