This is yet another study demonstrating that the wrong kind of exercise can cause fertility problems. Researchers did a population based health survey in Norway examining close to 4,000 women and found that after adjusting for age, parity, smoking, and marital status, women who exercised on most days were over 3 times more likely to have fertility problems than inactive women. Out of the group that exercised a lot, if the exercise was to exhaustion they had double the odds of infertility when compared to those that had lower intensity workouts. The authors concluded that awareness of the possible risks of infertility should be highlighted among women who exercise vigorously. Interestingly, BMI (body-mass index) was not associated with fertility problems in this study.
 
Our clinical experience confirms this. Many of our fertility patients exercise regularly and vigorously and that was creating problems for them. However, proper exercise can greatly enhance fertility as it facilitates blood flow, proper hormone function, reduces stress and can balance the acid/alkaline ratios. So we created a yoga DVD that is specific to improving reproductive function. If you are interested, you can learn more about it here.
 
Hum Reprod. 2009 Dec;24(12):3196-204. Epub 2009 Oct 3.