A super-fit father of two has died from a heart attack just minutes after completing a gym workout. Paul Burbery, 53, a psychotherapist at Prestwich Hospital, trained four times a week at Total Fitness in Whitefield and led a healthy lifestyle, cycling everywhere and taking part in Strong Man competitions.
Despite a family history of heart problems, Paul believed he was in the clear after he and his brothers took an ECG test weeks before his death. However, it was only after his tragic death that his family learned he suffered from cardiomyopathy, an inherited condition affecting the heart's rhythm that would only show up on an MRI scan.
Gym staff worked hard to save Paul when he collapsed following training, but sadly he died. In his memory, they cycled 140 miles from Whitefield to Hereford, raising £1,600 for the North West Air Ambulance charity, which had saved the life of Paul's brother Peter after a motorbike accident.
Paul leaves his wife of 15 years, Julie, 46, a psychiatric nurse, and two daughters, Jennifer, 21, and Lottie, 15. Julie said: 'Paul was my soul mate, a big man with a big heart.'
Helen Roberts, Paul's sister-in-law, said: 'He was at the gym, one minute he was laughing and joking about having the week off, and the next he had a heart attack. He was the one person you never thought this could happen to.' More than 500 mourners attended his funeral in May.
