Quit smoking
Planning to kick the habit? Make sure you get your menstrual cycle working for—not against—you. A study reported in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology found that women who attempt to quit smoking during the first half of their menstrual cycles experienced less severe withdrawal symptoms than women who waited until after ovulation.Reproductive redux
Mother Nature built a lot of excess capacity into your reproductive system. You started out with six to seven million eggs, but that quantity dwindled to just 400,000 eggs by the time you reached puberty. You’ll only release about 500 of those eggs during your entire reproductive lifespan and—at most—you may end up giving birth to a couple of children.Sex
You can expect to have sex about 3000 times in your lifetime. Many of these encounters will occur around the middle of your menstrual cycle, when you’re programmed to be interested in sex. Your vision and your sense of smell become more acute and you’re suddenly drawn to men with particularly masculine features—the scientific reason behind your sudden compulsion to race to the video store to rent all those Rambo movies.