BRITAIN'S MOST TRIVIAL COURSE?

I couldn't believe what I was reading - was this some kind of April Fool's Day prank? No, it's mid-June so it couldn't be that.

Five women, between the ages of 16 and 50, took a six-week class in .........
how to walk in high heels.

Yes, that's right, five women took lessons in the art of walking in high heels at a college in South London.

"It was part of a range of extra-curricular 'enrichment' activities we offer" says a spokesperson.
Chyna Whyne, the high heels guru leading the course, started giving lessons after she developed chronic back pain from years of standing in heels.
Seeing her course as more than learning how to strut down the street in style. "Some women come to me with low self-esteem (and if Whyne is anything to go by, chronic back pain I shouldn't wonder), some have marriage break-ups or problems at work, and after I've finished working with them, they are filled with confidence (if only it were that simple). This is a transformation from head to toe," she claims. - Emine Saner, the Guardian.

I really don't know whether to laugh or cry. On first glance, it seemed such a silly course to be offering women (and men?) and yet, on thinking about it, it's quite sad to think that this women actually believes that the answer to some of these problems is being able to walk in a pair of heels.Charging £150 per week for this course, it is even worse to think that a college is making money out of (to use Whyne's words) women, some of whom have self-esteem issues.

Oh and in case you don't have the time/£150 per week for the course, here are Whyne's top five tips ... for free.

• Do foot exercises - pointing and flexing, ankle rotations and raising on to the balls of the feet.
• Buy the right shoes for you (try flatties?) - (Whyne) sees women who have been wearing the wrong size for years.
• Lead with the ball of your foot. If you lead with the heel, this can make you unbalanced (nothing to do with walking on ? inch heels then!) and the heel can break (not to mention your ankle). Keep your feet turned out (and to think my physioterrorist spent months trying to rid me of doing just this).
• Keep the knees locked otherwise the lower back starts to lock.
• Try the ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE*.Wearing high heels is a question of balance and this technique (as well as making more money for Whyne/the college?) teaches you how to hold yourself correctly.

*The Alexander Technique is a way to feel better, and move in a more relaxed and comfortable way... the way nature intended - The Complete Guide To the Alexander Technique. Hmm - high heels - as nature intended? It seems to me that  the teachings of Ms. Whyne and the teachings of the Alexander Technique might be at cross purposes here.