How to Use Your Feet in Ballroom Dancing
The short answer: in Ballroom, every direction is measured off your supporting foot, not off the room and not off your top half. Forward is straight forward, side is in line with your standing leg, backwards is straight back on two tracks, and closed means toes and heels together. Where the feet go, the body follows.
Which dances does this footwork lesson cover?
The swing dances: Waltz, Slow Foxtrot, Viennese Waltz and Quickstep. Tango is a separate dance, so I don't cover it here. How your feet work determines the quality of your movement and the quality of your dancing.
What are the parts of the foot in Ballroom dancing?
Heel, ball of foot, toe, outside edge of toe or foot, inside edge of toe, inside edge of whole foot, and whole foot. They're named for a reason: each one lets you control your body weight as you finish a movement. In Ballroom you use your heels going forward, and the ball and toe going backwards.
How do you measure directions in Ballroom dancing?
Imagine all your Ballroom dancing happens on a cross. Your closed feet are the middle of the cross:
- Closed: toes kissing and heels together. Not roughly near each other.
- Forward: straight forward. Drive the heel through the floor to create a glide, without drifting onto a diagonal.
- Backwards: straight back on two tracks, reaching with the toe so you can control your body weight.
- Side: directly in line with your supporting leg. Side and slightly forward, or side and slightly back, are different directions.
- Heel leads: lift the toe close to a 45 degree angle, then drive through the floor in the direction of travel.
- Heel timing: going forward, the heel strikes the floor as it passes the toe of the supporting foot. If it lands too late, your quality of movement suffers.
Common mistakes
- Letting a diagonal sneak in when you go forward or backwards.
- Measuring directions off the room or your upper body instead of your supporting foot.
- Closing your feet roughly near each other instead of toes and heels together.
- Letting the heel strike the floor too late going forward.
Try this in your next practice
Dance a box Waltz slowly and check every step against the cross: straight forward on the heel, side in line with your standing leg, feet fully closed, straight back on the toe. Then take the same focus back through your own routine.
Frequently asked questions
What does "closed" mean in Ballroom footwork?
Toes kissing and heels together. If your feet are only roughly near each other, they aren't closed.
When should my heel touch the floor going forward?
As it passes the toe of your supporting foot.
Why does footwork matter so much?
When both partners dance precise directions, you move comfortably together. And for CBM, CBMP, sway and swing to come together, it always starts in the feet.
Does this apply to Latin dancing?
No. This lesson is for Ballroom footwork. Latin footwork has its own lesson.
Related lessons
- How to use your feet for Latin American dancing
- Footwork and foot positions in Ballroom dancing
- How to have world-class posture
- Slow Foxtrot Feather Step
Vaughan Liddicoat is a 4 time World Professional 10 Dance representative for Australia, an accredited coach and the founder of Ballroom Mastery. He has a passion for dance and wants to help you become the best dancer you can be and have an amazing time doing it.
Fix one thing in your dancing every week.
Most dancers practise for years without knowing what's really holding them back. The Mastery Letter is my free weekly letter that shows you, one clear lesson at a time.
Every week you get one lesson, one tip and one story from me, a 4 time World Professional 10 Dance representative for Australia. Ballroom and Latin, from frame and footwork to timing and hip action.
It takes under five minutes to read, so you can take it straight into your next practice.
Enter your email below. Edition 1 is yours as soon as you confirm.
Free. Unsubscribe any time. Your email is never shared or sold.
