This year I want to get fitter and faster. This time last year I was not in a good place. My body had taken a battering from an overactive thyroid. My strength, endurance, and balance had been drained from me. I was also having to deal with a range of other unpleasant symptoms including overwhelming fatigue. An overactive thyroid is a full blown assault on the body. But I had a diagnosis and I’d been started on medication which was slowly working it’s magic.

The start of 2022 was all about regaining what I’d lost and returning to full health.

I focused on my 63rd birthday in April. Registering for a 10k run, regaining my strength to be able to deadlift 100kg again and doing those all important, abhorrent, birthday burpees. I completed all three.

I felt good. I was being managed well by the NHS and responding well to the medication. I’m aware that this isn’t always the case so felt very grateful.

When I first became ill I was convinced that it was a return of my heart issues. Not wanting to endure a NHS waiting list (reported in a national newspaper as two years)I paid for an echocardiogram at a private clinic. That identified a number of issues which my cardiologist described as ‘not completely normal’. Importantly there is nothing, currently, that requires treatment or restrictions being applied.

But something has changed. I’ve become so much slower. A year ago I could run 5k in under 35 minutes. Now it takes me 39 minutes.

I started training for Hyrox back in June. I was confident that I could increase my speed with focused training. Not a chance. I started at 8 minute per kilometre. I wasn’t much faster by the time I competed.

According to my heart metrics I’m fit. My resting heart rate is around 60 bpm, my maximum heart rate is 178 bpm and I’ve a 2 minute heart rate recovery of 55 beats which is good and makes my biological age slightly younger than my calendar age.

But the issues identified on the echocardiogram including diastolic dysfunction and aortic valve regurgitation have reduced the effectiveness of my heart as a pump. This has resulted in a slowing down. My heart can’t keep up with my legs. So I’m starting to look at how I can become more efficient and effective by working on other areas of my fitness.

Could I increase my running speed my lengthening or shortening my stride? I know that when I run I tend to slightly stoop. What would be the impact if I corrected that? I’ve done some reading on the effectiveness of only breathing through the nose when running. Most of us tend to breathe out through the mouth. Exclusive nasal breathing is more efficient but it can take some practice.

Could my form be improved on the rower and the ski erg?

I could also improve my flexibility. When I was doing those Hyrox burpee broad jumps I was required to place my hands by my feet. My poor flexibility made this quite challenging.

So flexibility, form, technique and breathing are all areas of my fitness that I can focus on.

Will they make me faster? Time and practice will tell.