Maura Higgins reveals the toll Dancing With The Stars is taking on her body after finishing second on the leaderboard

Maura Higgins showed off her calloused feet as she revealed the toll that intense Dancing With The Stars training has taken on her body.

The Love Island star, 35, is currently starring on the US dance show with professional partner Mark Ballas, 40, with the pair having recently landed second on the leaderboard and are tipped as a favourite to win the series.

However, the path to success has come at a cost to Maura's poor feet, as she held up her pained tootsies in a new Instagram snap shared by Mark on Sunday.

The Irish star pulled an alarmed expression as she clutched her calloused and blistered feet while on the floor of a dance studio amid her gruelling training for the show.

Among Mark's other snaps, Maura is seen looking exhausted on the floor while dressed in her glamorous show costume. 

Mark – the son of Strictly’s Shirley Ballas – uploaded a plethora of other backstage shots featuring himself and Maura, with the duo continuing to impress despite the injuries.

Writing in the comments, new Blind Date host Maura joked that her feet 'may never forgive' Mark, before praising him for being the 'best partner'. 

She penned: 'The best partner!!!!! Really couldn’t have asked for a better person by my side throughout this journey!!! Thank you for believing in me, pushing me, putting up with me and most importantly making this whole experience so special!! 

'So much love for you and your beautiful family ❤️ My feet may never forgive you but I will continue to work as hard as I can.'

It comes after Maura revealed she's struggling with negative feedback from the judges and partner Mark as they instruct her to 'fix everything' on Dancing With The Stars.

Despite wowing on the dancefloor, Maura admitted she has been 'crying in the toilets' during rehearsals.   

Speaking to former finalist and influencer Alix Earle on her Get Ready With Me podcast, Maura claimed the relentless criticism from judges and trainers makes it hard for contestants to feel any sense of achievement.

She said: 'I don't usually cry, I'm more of a suffer in silence girl. I usually wait until I get home and I can't hold in my tears and it's week two, I don't know what's happening.

'Mark will say to me, and we have so much fun in the rehearsal room but it's kind of like, "This is an entertainment show have fun" and then he's like in the rehearsal room going, "What's that? Why is your hand like that and what's with the pigeon feet?"'

Alix agreed: 'You're not ready for the negative feedback in the beginning and that's all it is in the beginning because they are there to correct you but it's a lot.'

Maura added: 'Yeah you just feel like you're s***. 

'I'm so hard on myself anyway and then everything is wrong. I hear, "You're doing really well but fix your arm, fix your neck, fix hips and toes", like how am I doing well. It's a lot.' 

The Reale Actives founder admitted she struggled to hold back the tears last year as Irish star Maura confessed she has already had a 'breakdown' in the toilets during rehearsals. 

Alix explained: 'Last year I was in the bathroom stall and one of the producers heard me crying and was like "Hi let's get you out on camera".'

'Oh my god I cried in the bathroom too yesterday, they love it and I don't want to cry on camera and then I ended up breaking down,' Maura said. 'It's crazy because why am I crying and being pathetic'.