Geoff

The Cardiac Clinic is… Achievable, Friendly, Encouraging

I am 78 years old and I remember back at secondary school when I was an active cross country runner. I went on to join the harrier club and I even completed a 10 mile run. I have always considered myself as reasonably fit. I’m a non-smoker who has lived really well. After 20 years of teaching one day after school I began to feel very unwell and it was then I found out that I had a cardiac fibrillation. After tests it was discovered that my cholesterol level was very high along with my blood pressure. I needed to take medicine to help me survive and the side effects were not great. Prior to this I was very active as a square dancer three nights a week but after the event walking caused too much pain. I was concerned about my fitness and was unsure what to do to get better.

I saw the article about The Cardiac Clinic and I knew this would be the right place for me. The first few weeks were really hard. I could barely manage 3 minutes on the treadmill and at the end of the 12 week programme I was able to walk for 10-15 minutes. Because of the extreme improvement in my life I decided to continue on the programme, it would have been a disservice to myself to stop. I have been on the maintenance programme for a year and will continue. I am given goals to extend my abilities and I like the friendly and encouraging atmosphere.