IN A darkened room I stand, face painted, glow sticks in hand. A tray of shot glasses sit in the corner, fluorescent lights flicker and glare as a throbbing dance beat blasts from the speakers.

I’m not in Ibiza. I’m not at a rave. I’m in Dalton. And I’m learning how to Clubbercise.

Set to a soundtrack of 90s dance anthems and modern hits, this is the fast-growing fitness class sweeping gyms and studios across the country which promises to ‘bring a night out to a workout’.

Classes have been on offer at Dalton Leisure Centre since the beginning of the year, and to say they are popular is something of an understatement.

Instructor Bill Maddrick explained: “It’s been crazy. People are booking two weeks in advance just to get on. We had someone get the train down here from Workington to come to a class.”

Clubbercise was dreamt up by three friends who, after having families, found themselves looking to recreate the excitement of their clubbing days with exercise.

Co-founder Claire Burlison Green said:”We tried various dance fitness classes but couldn't find one that played the type of music we really wanted to hear - the kind of tracks that keep you glued to the dancefloor on a night out.

“We don't get to go clubbing as often as we used to due to work and family commitments and we also wanted a fun way to keep fit, so we decided to try and combine all of the highs of a night out with a healthy workout.”

Bill spotted the routines on YouTube and believed they would go down a storm in Dalton, so he signed up for a teaching course and convinced bosses to kit the exercise studio out with the nightclub lighting.

When he qualified, he was the 10th person in the country to do so. As far as he knows, nowhere else in Cumbria is doing it.

Huge demand prompted lifeguard and fitness teacher Sean Vasey to train for his instructor badge, which he passed following a rigorous examination last week. That made him number 14.

“It was an eight-hour day teaching classes and talking to mentors about the Clubbercise ethos,” said Sean.

“We can get 20 in a class but it’s been so hectic they sent me off to learn to become an instructor so we can put more on.”

So what’s the big deal? I was determined to find out for myself.

We live in a world filled with fad diets, where every week a new workout promises to give us a six packs in six weeks, or reduce dress sizes in a matter of days. So it was difficult not to feel cynical about this latest craze.

I am a leisure centre regular but very much a head down, get-on-with-it type. I stick to calorie-burning cardio and mostly avoid group exercise because I hate the mirrors and that feeling of being exposed.

But upon walking into the studio my attitude soon changed.

Women - and one man! - a few of whom were older than myself with faces covered in glow paint. Instructors handing out fruit juice in shot glasses like nightclub reps on Magaluf’s main strip.

Unlike other brightly-lit exercises classes, this is a place where inhibitions are left at the door. The darkness means that even the most self-conscious can let themselves go.

Lights are down, except for the blue strobe which makes my teeth glow, and I regret wearing a white T-shirt. Something about seeing everyone around me going for it sends me straight for the glow paint, and within seconds my face and neck are covered.

Bill and Sean, both in trainers with flashing lights contouring the sole, and begin with the warm-up.

The workout itself is a blend of high and low impact moves which are easy to follow and adaptable according to fitness levels.

Club classics such as Strike’s You Sure Do and more recent, dance-y hits like Blacked Eyed Peas Pump It blare out.

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If you lose a step, or miss something, there’s no sudden panic or embarrassment. The music compels you to keep moving and you’re encouraged to bring some of your best (or worst) moves to the floor.

By the time House of Pain’s Jump Around comes on, I’m bouncing up and down and singing along at the top of my lungs like a teenager in her bedroom. I can’t stop smiling.

Time passes so quickly compared to some other clock-watching classes. When it comes to the warm-down, you want to go out, rather than pass out.

And I’m not alone in my newfound fandom.

Mother Julie Wren, from Barrow, was first brought along by her teenage daughter and loved it so much she convinced her friend to give it a try.

She said: “I’d just started running again and I wanted to try something a bit different. This is fun.

“Sometimes you don’t always feel like exercising but here I think with the atmosphere you don’t get that. You don’t feel embarrassed or anything.”

Lois Morell, aged 15, from Barrow said: “When I first started coming I just really enjoyed it.

“I am quite sporty anyway but I come here because it’s so much fun. The time absolutely flies, you don’t realise because you’re too busy dancing.”

• Classes take place at Dalton Leisure Centre on the following days:

Monday - 7.45pm

Tuesday - 8.15pm

Wednesday - 8.15pm

Friday - 1.30pm