To boost your chances of getting pregnant, it helps to know when you're ovulating. Then you'll know when you and your partner should be having sex.

Ovulation happens halfway through your cycle. Every woman’s cycle is different, so you have to pay attention to the signs.

There are many ways you can tell if the time is right.

What Are Ovulation Symptoms?

Here are the signs you may have when your body releases an egg:

  • Your basal or resting temperature falls slightly, then rises again. You can use a special thermometer to check your temperature every morning before you get out of bed. You’re most fertile 2 or 3 days before your temperature rises.
  • Your cervical mucus becomes clearer and thinner with a slippery consistency, like egg whites.

You may also notice:

But these symptoms don’t always mean you’re ovulating.

How to Track Ovulation Symptoms

Mark your calendar

Take note of when your period begins and ends and know how long your cycle lasts. Doctors say it's best to have sex at least every other day, especially during the 5 days before you ovulate. They call this your "fertile window." Your egg only lives for about 12 to 24 hours. But sperm can survive for a few days inside your body, so it's ideal to have them already there waiting for your egg.

Watch for body changes

Your hormone levels change throughout your menstrual cycle. During the first half, your ovaries give off the hormone estrogen. When your estrogen levels get high enough, your ovary releases an egg. Then your body starts to make progesterone, another hormone. It makes your body temperature rise slightly.

Your hormones also change the texture of your cervical mucus, the sticky fluid that comes from your cervix, the bottom of your uterus. As your body gets ready to ovulate, you have more of it, and it feels more stretchy and slippery, like raw egg whites. The texture helps sperm swim inside your body. When your mucus feels like this, you should be in your fertile window.