When I first came up with the concept of organising a Guru event revolving around a pole and a hard surface, half the community thought I had given myself a pre-emptive alternative hen night without a bride! Not so, as I decided that the burden of a stuffed Christmas turkey left me clucking on about an impending calorific shower, and ways to hone and tone going into December.

So I swung to the idea of a beginner’s pole dancing class courtesy of Pole Secrets, a taster of their six-week course offered in gyms across London. This event took place at LA Fitness in Marylebone, definitely one of the swankier venues in their sizeable portfolio. Our lesson consisted of a five-minute warm up and then ten minutes of Muscular Strength Endurance, awakening muscle groupings I never knew existed beyond GCSE Biology class.

We ran through a series of pole moves, each building in difficulty levels before covering off filler moves giving you, in theory, the confidence to create your routines in front of the mirror, lover, life partner (delete as applicable).

Our fully energised, attentive and most dexterous teacher Emma Ashby, stressed the importance of pole fitness, in addition to the aspects of dance more commonly attributed to the sport.

Of course, swinging around like an adept mountain gorilla came more easily to some than others, and my backside had a couple of amusing encounters with the well trodden floor. Nonetheless this class gave us the opportunity to unleash the animal within, whether stationed with legs coiled around the pole or gracefully in transition. Sport with a comedic element always tops my favourites list of more active pastimes.

So whether you’re 15 or 50, married or in the throes of passion, this session comes highly recommended to all the flexible and less so among us. A chance to be sexy and seductive without the rigamorole of going to Agent Provocateur for a measurement. You’ll be entertained, enthralled and thighs will ache lovingly from a jolly good work out. Aim for pole perfection with a full range of their classes available now in London.