Beyoncé - the day I learned to dance like my idol - Telegraph On arrival, I'm relieved to find it's a very mixed crowd of ladies (and one very game man). I'm greeted by instructors Bonnie and Elliot - the latter is, as it turns out, an ACTUAL backing dancer for Rihanna. Gulp. Thankfully they're both really lovely and non-intimidating. Shepherding us into the large dance studio, Elliot takes the lead at the front, emphasizing that we should all ask as many questions as we want, go for it and have fun. First, they take us through a cardio warm-up during which Elliot, possessed of superhuman energy levels, bounces around like Tigger - while I, doing my best to bounce as fast as him, wish I'd worn a heavier-duty sports bra. This is followed by an intense round of sit-up heavy floor work. Already decidedly out of breath, it's time for the main event. With Beyoncé's anthem Single Ladies blasting, we're straight into the routine. At first, it's not the steps that are daunting so much as locating my inner "Bey." At least it's not just me. Before long Elliot is delivering a pep talk on playing the character of the dance. By which he mainly means sticking our bums out: "Beyoncé"s not about this!" He demonstrates, tucking his hips under and hunching his shoulders, "she's about this!" Throwing his head and shoulders back, he arches his body into a diva posture. Elliot divides us into pairs and sends us strutting across the studio, stomping it like a runway and hitting a fierce pose to the mirror at every corner. We all shake out our hair and toss it around like glamazons. It feels ridiculous, but achieves the desired result as everybody noticeably loosens up. As we move through the routine towards the iconic chorus, the choreography gets significantly more challenging and I begin to feel my ability and strength levels getting used up rapidly! Despite this intense exertion, 90 minutes flies by. During the session I don't check the clock even once - a claim I cannot make during my weekly spin class. By the time we wrap things up with a gentle warm-down, I've had a serious workout and I've managed virtually to commit the routine to memory; it's just one or two of the most challenging moves I'm still having trouble with. It certainly ain't as easy as Beyoncé and the girls in the Single Ladies video made it look - the routine is challenging in terms of leg and core strength. Getting into the groove The SOS team's great accomplishment is to keep the atmosphere of the workshop very accessible, even when the moves get a bit less so. Though I simply can't manage, in the end, to shimmy my weight smoothly down nearly to the floor, then drop onto one leg, then whip round into a side-on crouch with a bounce before coming back up seductively (I feel completely exhausted even typing it out), I'm certainly not made to feel like I've failed Beyoncé boot camp. Bonnie and Elliot demonstrate the full routine at the end for students to film on their phones, and provide a reference point for those who want to perfect the tricky bits in the privacy of home. By this point I would welcome a bit of privacy. Although I may not quite perfect the moves, I may well join SOS for their rumoured Single Ladies Part 2 workshop. As an exercise in unleashing one's inner Sasha Fierce, it really is great fun. Verity is account director at digital agency Polaris Media, where she advises clients from premiership footballers to private banks on social media. An itinerant blogger, and now keen dancer, follow her on Twitter: @MissVerityFine.