I was scrolling recently when I fell down the rabbit hole of Kaylie Stewart’s viral “prepping for pregnancy” series. In her videos, Stewart and her husband approach conception with the focus of Olympic athletes. There are AM routines, “what I eat in a day” montages featuring electrolytes and pasture-raised eggs, and perfectly coordinated supplement stacks.
The trend is hardly surprising, since everyone is already tracking their sleep, steps, and recovery, and it was only a matter of time before this data-driven focus was applied to fertility. In Trimester Zero, the three- to six-month period before conception, couples test their egg and sperm quality and “prepare” the body’s internal environment for the upcoming nine months.
What it looks like in practice is a complete overhaul of their current life. It means tossing plastic Tupperware for glass to avoid endocrine-disrupting BPA and replacing non-stick pans with cast iron. It involves swapping the morning oat milk latte for mineral-rich bone broth and adding rituals like red light therapy, weekly acupuncture, and strictly timed cold plunges. For some, it’s a meticulous supplement stack: CoQ10 for mitochondrial health, methylated folate, and prenatals taken months before the first attempt.
It’s about “building the runway before the plane lands”, as Kunakshi Dadia, founder of Kunakshi’s Kore Pilates, puts it. In her Trimester Zero, she was using Pilates and strength training to stabilise the pelvic floor and deep core long before they were tasked with carrying a child. For Tanvi Dalal, a nutritionist and founder of WellNest Nutrition, it’s also a period to address nutrient deficiencies and create a resilient internal environment.
The algorithm suggests that if you just buy the right supplement or master the right ritual, you can “hack” your fertility. They're selling the dream: easier conception, fewer prenatal issues—some creators claim to have sidestepped the dreaded nausea, too—and a healthier baby.
But is this newfound clarity giving us a sense of control, or is it just another item on an already long to-do list? In a world where women already carry the bulk of the domestic and emotional load, this “pre-pregnancy curriculum” can easily morph into a new kind of meritocracy. Dalal acknowledges this double-edged sword: “For some women, it’s empowering to know they have agency in shaping their health before pregnancy,” she says. “For others, especially in the age of social media, it can feel like just another standard to ‘optimise’ or get perfectly right.”
For women navigating conditions like PCOS or endometriosis, the weight of this prep is even more acute. Carina Kohli, founder of healthcare app Humm Care, notes that the framing of this phase is everything. “The idea of ‘prep’ can feel heavy. Many women with PCOS are already tracking cycles, managing insulin resistance, and navigating weight fluctuations,” she explains. “If it means giving women access to better information about their overall wellbeing, metabolic health, thyroid function, and nutrient levels, then that’s a good practice,” says Kohli, but she warns against the psychological cost of the fix-it mindset. “If it’s presented as ‘fix yourself before you try’, it adds burden and pressure.”
The realisation that we can’t control the outcome often leads to a more focused kind of pragmatism. After navigating the heartbreak of loss and a six-month plateau, filmmaker Shaana Levy-Bahl found that lifestyle changes and finding peace need to be paired with a little bit of math. Her doctor suggested a very practical approach: tracking her cycle to know exactly when to try. While it wasn’t “romantic”, using tools like an Ava watch proved a way to find peace of mind. As Kohli notes, for those with PCOS, this structured support is where the hope lies: “Relatively modest lifestyle shifts and a proactive approach can meaningfully improve fertility outcomes.”
The fertility conversation absolutely over-centres women and, biologically, that imbalance isn’t justified.”
There is a lopsided reality to the Trimester Zero conversation: it is overwhelmingly focused on women. While women are tracking every degree of their basal body temperature, the other half of the biological equation is often sitting on the sidelines.
Out of nine texts and emails I sent to men I know, none wanted to talk about it in detail. None of them had been tested. This lack of conversation is surprising given the data. Kohli agrees, “The fertility conversation absolutely over-centres women and, biologically, that imbalance isn’t justified. Research shows that male factors contribute to approximately 40 to 45 per cent of infertility cases.”
However, when men do join the journey, the results can be life-changing. Levy-Bahl recalls a friend who had been trying for years without success. After finally looking at his own lifestyle to improve sperm motility—addressing his diet, sleep, and overall health—they conceived almost immediately. “A regulated nervous system is contagious,” she says. “When you and your partner are steady together, that matters.”
The final hurdle of Trimester Zero isn’t something you can track on an app; it is the ability to surrender. We live in a culture that tells women they can project-manage their way into motherhood, but nature doesn’t always follow a spreadsheet.
"I’d tell someone, yes, do the prep. Make it fun. Make it nourishing. But also allow yourself cheat days. Have crazy sex. Go out and dance. Don’t make it your entire identity,” Levy-Bahl says. “You could do everything right and still need medical intervention. So, you might as well live happily. If dancing and having a carefree night floods your body with endorphins, that’s good for you too.”
