Dead Man to Iron Man: A Ten Month Journey from Dead Meat to Athlete

I loved this book - as a fellow survivor of pseudomyxoma peritonei I lived, squirmed and laughed every moment of Paul's medical experience and its aftermath. His road to recovery and his decision to undertake the Ironman challenge was awesome and inspiring. It is a lesson to everybody that we can let illness dictate our lives or we can try to take back control and shape our own future and quality of life. This book is a must for anybody suffering from this disease - it is honest, realistic and doesn't offer false hope. But it does show what most of us recovering from any serious illness can achieve - that we can become strong again, that we can make better use of life and take on challenges that we might have been putting off until retirement.

I loved this book and found it to be very inpsiring.It is written by a fellow appendix cancer warrior and goes over what it is like to be diagnosed with cancer, what recovery is like after CRS and HIPEC, and the struggles and strength of training for, and accomplishing BIG goals.Filled with humor and honesty. I laughed quite a bit.

A book written from the heart and soul of a survivor. It’s a heartbreaking read but the real gem is realisation that life goes on and the courage that it takes to really make a difference. Paul Smith takes you through a journey where you live and breath his agony both surviving his cancer and then the amazing achieve that leads to Ironman, all made more palatable with his unique sense of dry humour which I feel is the hidden secret of this book. Great read.

Paul completed his Ironman about a year before I did mine. His story was a huge inspiration as I was preparing. I was reading sections of his book as he was writing them. His message to me was that once I finished the Ironman something would click. A switch in my brain would flick, and everything would be different. It was. Whether you are planning on doing an Ironman, or whether you want to be inspired to achieve something else, this is a great book. A great story very well written.

Cancer is a very real fear for all of us. Paul manages to deliver the reality of the big C in a way that is honest, funny and real. His level of resilience is inspiring but absolutely accessible. Despite having the title Ironman, he allows us all to see that anything is possibly and that a diagnoses as serious as his was, isn't a reason to give up. Highly recommend.

An inspiring book from a genuine and humble man. I was fully laughing out loud in some places and genuinely shed tears in others. It is written from the heart, no fluffy language and comes across as if you’re chatting with a friend, it really is a genuine account and you’ll feel like Paul is your best mate after just the first few pages. I have recommended it to friends and family, several of which have gone through either Ironman training or Cancer treatment - no others have done both!

A great read. Written in such a way that you can’t help but feel wow that could be me. At times it’s very thought provoking with regards to your health but then at times it’s really inspiring when discussing the recovery and training. The book has as many funny moments as it does dark which is strange given the topic but all adds the overriding theme which for me was stop taking things for granted, push yourself forward and you will be amazed at what you can do.