06/18/2026
One of the best things you can do for yourself when you first start taking dance lessons and the thing that will help you get the most value of out each lesson is to say the timing or count when the teacher asks you to do so. And then keep saying the timing or counting even when the teacher isn't asking you! :)
We promise, you won't have to count forever but as a beginner, it's a steep learning curve to go from zero to something and while there's no short cut, counting the steps, saying the timing, will speed up the process.
Here is what counting and saying the rhythm does:
1. Engages your brain with what your body is doing.
For a new dancer, physical body patterns, movements, skills can feel quite abstract and very much like a foreign language. The brain has no reference point with which to organize these new ideas. Words (for example "quick, quick, slow" or "123, 567" are familiar and can help the brain guide the feet better.
2. Brings you into the present moment, present space.
When you step out of your comfort zone and your familiar scene or "box", your mind is trying to take in and process a whole vat of new information. You may be distracted by the room, the music, the feel of the floor under your feet, your partner, how your body feels in this new situation. It's easy to get caught up in all this and focus on all the things that are preventing you from learning what you actually want to learn. Counting gives your brain something to latch onto. You know how to count and focusing on something that concrete can ground your thoughts and help you focus.
3. Makes the process internal, rather than external, and helps you own what you are learning rather than depending on outside stimuli.
Visual learning is great and an important tool. However, if it's the only thing that triggers the right action in your body, you won't be able to create that action without that visual cue. Step outside of class and will you be able to recreate the steps you just learned? If you were using only visual cues, the chances are no. Counting engages more of your entire person and creates more complex, deeper and therefor stronger neural pathways. If you count, chances are much greater that if you close your eyes or step outside of class, you will be able to keep going and recreate the pattern or step that you were learning or had just learned.
4. That goes the same for auditory learning.
It's great and an important tool but hearing the teacher count, and reacting to their counting for you is not the same as counting for yourself. They will not be there on your date/cruise/wedding/ nor practice outside of class. You have to count for yourself so you own it.
5. Builds musical connection.
There is an idea regarding the universe that everything has a beat, everything has a rhythm but sometimes this can be elusive in music and dancing if you've never given this much thought. You know it's there, your teacher said so, people around you seem to be in on it, you can maybe, sort of feel it, yet you can't quite grasp it. This can be a tricky and frustrating situation for some new dancers. Music training can help but elementary music lessons are all about beats and notes which is basically what counting the various dance rhythms is. It might be a while before the "light bulb" goes on and things click but those elementary words and numbers are forming a pattern in your brain. Hearing the music of the different dances activates another part of your brain and your brain subconsciously process what is happening in the music, finding patterns. Eventually the two will meet and that's when you will get that "Eureka!" moment and say, "Finally, now I know what the teacher is talking about." However, if you don't count, you're missing one half of the equation.
6. Weight change and core/balance improvement. Counting the rhythm helps you to learn and recognize the patterns of steps. You know where you're supposed to be and when and for how long. Having that clarity gives you confidence to be on a certain foot rather then the other or getting caught standing split weight. That in turn makes for cleaner, more intentional and complete weight changes. This makes your dancing look a whole lot better than floundering between your feet. Confident, deliberate weight changes will also feel a whole lot better to your partner (and boomerang that good feeling back to you) when your weight (your body) is where it's supposed to be at the time it's supposed to be there.
7. You will have to count eventually. Like I said in the beginning, there is no short cut to becoming a great dancer. There is a process, a pathway to learning movement and connecting to your partner and the music. Counting is one of the skills/milestones/steps that every dancer has to go through - when you are a new dancer, when you're an advanced dancer learning a new step, when you hear a new piece of music and are trying to find the beat, when you're trying to better synchronize with a partner, etc. It is part of the common language that dancers share. It is part of the language that teachers use to teach you new skills, patterns and techniques. Often dancers who did not count at the beginning but are starting to recognize the value of this a few months into their dancing journey wish they'd started earlier, now that they understand more of what's involved. Sometimes that is what it takes, finding that out for yourself. Sometimes it's just best to trust the teacher, to follow the instructions of their expertise, do what they're asking you to do and count!
If you pursue this amazing skill - one so worth pursuing! - one day you will find yourself counting.
When you read you begin with ABC, when you dance you begin with 123... 😉
Might as well start now!
Check out this clip, in particular starting at about the 1:30 mark.
Thank you Darren for sharing the clip!
