Barefoot in the gym

True, I may have been a little out of practice. No doubt, like many Londoners, I haven't quite been at the gym as frequently as I should have since the start of 2011 but I thought I could handle a class with a name as gentle as willPower & grace. How wrong I was.

WillPower & grace is the latest group exercise class to work its way to London from the US and is about to be launched into 13 Virgin Active gyms across the capital.

Tapping into the growing interest in barefoot running - doing away with our cushioned trainers in favour of strengthening our own support systems (our feet) - it is the first dedicated barefoot workout to reach our gyms.

Developed by New Yorker Stacey Lei Krauss, who has studied barefoot exercise for 10 years and works as a fitness adviser for barefoot shoe manufacturers, the idea of the class is to strengthen and increase the mobility of your feet while teaching you to move and land gracefully on them (something I'm not known for).

It works on the same principle as barefoot running, which scientists and fitness professionals say ultimately helps prevent joint injuries and muscle strains because taking your shoes off stops heel striking - which sends damaging impacts through your feet, ankles, shins and knees.

WillPower & grace is a combination of foot conditioning and full-body cardiovascular exercises that will correct imbalances in your knees, hips and ankles and also helps prepare your feet for barefoot running - which requires a level of foot strength that takes some time to build.

Of course, aside from the fact that I knew I didn't need to bother bringing my trainers with me to the class, it was hard to know exactly what that would mean before I turned up.

Five minutes in, Lei Krauss got us performing trickery with our toes. We began the class by warming up our over-protected feet which she says "have effectively been in a cast for the last twentysomething years" - and it's a real challenge.

As she tells us to keep the balls of our feet flat to the ground while lifting our little and big toes but keeping the other three on the floor, I look down to realise that my toes are not responding at all. Instead, I'm standing with my hands contorted into the desired shape. My brain has forgotten how to communicate with my toes. Once our feet are flexed we move on to the cardio workout, which involves a series of squats, lunges, leaps and stretches.

The movements are dance-like so that while we squat we must also bend and circle our upper bodies, lifting our heads and quickly finding our own eyes in the mirror to correct our balance.
With every step we have to engage our core muscles so that we land gently on our feet and "without a sound". Stomping in this class is not allowed.

By the end I'm sweating profusely and my muscles are quivering with fatigue as I struggle to hold squat poses on my toes - the sign of a good workout.

It's not easy and (now I understand the name) requires plenty of will power to get through it, but despite the ache I will be back. Just think of the savings on sports socks and trainers.

willPower & grace launches at Virgin Active in April. Membership approx £55 per month. virginactive.co.uk /willPowerMethod.com