How to dance in a club for women
How To Dance With Women In A Club: Verified by women. -
How to dance with women? We guys have all been there. We are at a party and we see all these beautiful girls on the dancefloor. Our natural reaction is to want to dance with them.
So how should guys go about this? Well, much of the advice available is given by men. However, it is in fact women who are much better placed to give this advice. For women are the ones who know what truly works (instead of men who just ‘think’ they know what works).
We compiled a comprehensive set of responses from a wide variety of women on their advice for how men should dance with women. This advice is logically broken down below:
To dance well with women at a party or club requires men to:- Be aware of the need to earn a womens trust
- Ackowledge the difference between dancing and ‘picking up’
- Become a good dancer themselves
- Practice partner dancing
- Be well-groomed and have good fashion
- Assess what type of woman they are interested in dancing with
- Use subtle signs to signal their interest to the woman and being perceptive to the woman’s mutual interest
- Select an appropriate approach which aligns with the type of woman they are interested in
- Close distance to be within the woman’s proximity allowing dancing to ensue more easily
- Know what sort of dance moves they should do when dancing with a woman
- Know when to stop dancing and when to take things further.
In the following paragraphs, we break down how these criteria work in reality. This is supported by real experience and advice from women who have experienced dancing with men. We break down why these criteria are critically important for men on a dancefloor who want to dance with women.
Read on for 11 key factors that you should take into account before approaching women on a dancefloor. These will help to avoid embarrassment or awkwardness, or at worse, rejection.
Table of Contents
Be aware of the need to earn a woman’s trust:This is a very important thing to be aware of. Many women on a club dancefloor have reported being victims of men touching them with no consent. This means that women on dance floors have a legitimate distrust of men who approach them in clubs and parties.
The challenge of a dancefloor:
Understanding a woman’s mistrust of men on a club or party dancefloor is invaluable as a man. This enables men to be aware that they need to be careful when approaching women in a club.
Men need to understand that women have their defenses up in a club. These defenses are higher than in less sexualized environments, such as a cafe or book club.
This does mean that approaching women on a dancefloor is a particularly challenging/hostile environment, but not an impossible environment.
‘Nothing gets my defenses up more than a guy leering at us for 10 minutes then being attacked from behind on a dancefloor.’
‘From my experience, lots of guys think it’s ok to just come up behind a girl and just start grinding himself on her ass. THIS IS NOT OK.’
‘It is scary, and honestly very creepy to have someone casually establish control over you without consent.’
Emily, 24, club dancer,
Jacinta, 28, club dancer,
Rebecca, 19, Club dancer.
The need to be genuinely trustworthy:
This all means that a man needs to genuinely earn a woman’s trust. He needs to genuinely show her that he is not just there to touch/kiss her.
Note the word genuine, definitely don’t try and fake it, that is manipulative and immoral.
At this point, allow me to introduce Andrew Ferebee, who is a 3x bestselling dating author. He notes that without trust, the interaction will be laced with tension where the woman will be questioning:
- ‘Is he trying to sleep with me?’
- ‘Do I want to sleep with him?’
- ‘There are dozens of other guys here too, is he the one I want to go home with?’.
To avoid such tension and transactional behaviors, it is important to build genuine trust. It is also worth acknowledging that dancefloors are not the holy grail for easy relations between men and women. This is despite what movies and songs have portrayed them as.
Earning trust is the first and most important step in being able to dance with a woman.
Acknowledge the difference between dancing and ‘picking up’:It is critical, particularly at parties or clubs, that the difference between dancing and ‘picking up’ is understood.
For many men, the only reason they want to dance with a woman is to attempt to touch a woman. You guessed it, women are very perceptive to this. Indeed they are on the lookout for this and are generally not attracted to it. However, in some cases, it also works the opposite way too.
The trouble with ‘picking up’:
But, I hear you ask, what about the women that seem to enjoy guys that touch them immediately? Well, women have reported that there is indeed a small percentage of women that:
- Will likely be insecure physically
- Will usually drink too much
- Are attracted to the loudest, aggressive, and most rambunctious man in the room
- The man will touch her without much consent
- She will take this as evidence of her attractiveness and feel verified.
For the purposes of this article, these types of men and women are categorized in the ‘picking up’ category, not the dance category.
It is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED you avoid such behaviors due to the high potential for a lack of consent.
Also, remember that men who participate in this type of behavior are likely playing a numbers game. Let’s say a man hit’s on 30 women. The nature of this game means they might commit low-grade sexual assault on 28 out of 30 women. 2 out of 30 women might enjoy being dominated. That’s a pretty low success rate with a whole lot of harm caused.
This is a destructive and selfish game to play by those who have no qualms with traumatizing others. Unfortunately, such small success is very public. Many men biasedly see the success of the rambunctious man with his 2 out of 30 women. They would take that as proof that this is the only way to dance with women at a club. This is very incorrect and destructive.
The difference between dancing and ‘picking up’:
So, this article will focus on men dancing well with women for the purposes of having fun dancing. Not for the purposes of getting physical on a club dancefloor.
The end of the former vs the start of the latter can be flexible at times.
Particularly in a venue where the alcohol is flowing and the dancefloor is crowded and genuine attraction exists.
The difference is that the former is more wholesome, and more of a gentleman’s trait than the latter. And it is sorely needed on today’s modern party dancefloor.
A useful article to read which highlights the nuances of club dancing is How To Dance In A Club: The simple, proven technique.
In order to start dancing well, men need to do a subtle yet powerful shift from:
- Dancing for the sake of ‘picking up’
- To dancing for the sake of enjoying dancing.
Otherwise, your whole motivation and resulting movement are skewed. A metaphor for this might be eating food for the sake of savoring a delicious meal versus eating food in a competitive eating competition.
‘Have fun dancing and don’t be on a dancefloor just to get to a womans body.’
Advice seen in 97% of female responses.
This leads us to the fact that many men don’t know how to enjoy dance without ulterior sexual motives. This is addressed in the next paragraph.
Become a good dancer:This is where many men fail. The number of times you will see men who cannot dance try and dance with women is too high. This is not a good look.
Dancing poorly also reduces a man’s status. The reason for this is it is clear to the woman that the man does not have much athleticism. This a key attribute in the male-to-female attraction construct dating back centuries. The principle is how can you protect her when you have no warrior attributes.
So it is crucial that before a man looks to dance with a woman, he himself should focus on becoming a good dancer and learn how to genuinely enjoy dancing.
‘If men have rythym, cool dance moves, and are a confident dancer, there is a good chance a woman will want to dance with you before you even approach her.
Lauren, 25, club dancer.’
Two articles that are invaluable in this regard are as follows:
- How To Dance As A Guy: The complete guide men need.
- How To Become A Good Dancer: The complete guide people need.
Dancing well also allows men to show women what type of character they are. For example, if a man:
- Drinks to excess
- Careens around the dancefloor and stumbles into people
- Gets into women’s personal spaces without consent
- Has half a pint of beer sloshing in his hand and the other half of the pint is all over his clothes
This all clearly shows women what type of character he is, aka lacking class.
In another example, if a man:
- Is on a dancefloor genuinely enjoying the music
- Moves with confidence, humility and is courteous of others on a dancefloor
- Is sober enough to be in control of himself
Then this also shows women his more decent caliber of character.
Dancing with a girl is quite different from dancing by yourself. For this reason, it can be quite useful to gain some experience with partner dancing. However, it is acknowledged that club or party dancing with a girl is different from formal partner dancing.
When you practice partner dancing, whether it be Salsa, Ballroom, etc, you become more accustomed to the nuances of moving with a woman whilst dancing.
This is useful in a party or club scenario because you will already know:
- Rythym synergy between a man and woman, and what good synergy feels like.
- How it feels to hold a woman’s hands whilst dancing and how to lead those hands.
- Feet placement to avoid stepping on the woman’s toes or having your toes stepped on.
- How to perform some moves if it does come to partner dancing.
- What to do if a woman comes in close and wants to slow dance.
- The differences between partner versus solo dancing, etc.
- How to be comfortable with dancing with a woman, including eye contact.
This is a fairly straightforward staple of the attraction world, and yet one which is too often glossed over by men.
Similarly to dancing well, being well-groomed and having good fashion raises your status with women. Being well groomed includes the following:
- Trimming your beard or being clean shaven
- Good skin maintenance
- Attractive hair
- White and even teeth
- Attractive amounts of muscle/fat
- Good smell- includes body and breath.
Again women are very perceptive to these things as they themselves are often the masters of beauty and fashion. Remember if you can’t take of yourself, how can you take care of her?
This is particularly important in a scene such as a club or a party, given how visually-based these places are.
The reason for this is that the music is usually so loud that meaningful conversation is limited.
It is useful to think about the importance of grooming and fashion from a woman’s perspective. Would YOU want to dance with someone who looked below average and smelt below average too?
Tips on how to be well-presented:
So spend some time and invest some money into looking and smelling great. Some useful and quick tips to get you started in this regard are as follows:
Get inspired:Follow 2 fashion social media channels on your platform of choice. This will give you regular inspiration.
It will also give you tips on how to wear clothes fashionably by men who make a living from it. It forces you to engage in fashion choices as it will be a part of your social media consumption.
Identify what you need:Make yourself a list of clothes you need to improve your wardrobe. Include color, material, and context of when you would wear it.
Focus is key when shopping.
Set yourself a time limit of 1.5hrs whilst shopping. Also, keep notes as to when you last shopped and which shopping center. Remember that stores tend to introduce new clothes every fortnight to a month. Shopping efficiently will reduce the chance of burnout.
Be disciplined:Be disciplined with your grooming schedule and don’t be afraid to experiment with what works for you. Consider permanent solutions for body hair such as laser hair removal. If you do get laser hair removal be sure to seek out a reputable clinic to avoid harmful side effects.
However, be wary of such things as waxing which can cause negative side effects. Particularly if you are prone to in-grown hairs.
Stay fit:Join a gym or purchase home gym equipment and commit to a regular fitness schedule.
What your friends say about you:Also, be aware of what your own group looks like.
Are your friends well-groomed and dressing well? This can raise your general status.
Or is your group a large number of heavily muscled, tall men? This can be intimidating for women. Particularly if her acceptance of your dance invitation turns into her unknowingly accepting all of your friends into her small group of girlfriends.
Assess her type/group:Quickly assessing what type of woman you might be about to try and dance with is valuable for several reasons. The most notable of these reasons is that there are many different types of women on a dancefloor. Many of them also have different preferences and motives for dancing.
For example, a woman might look shy and not too confident on a dancefloor. Brashly going up to her and doing wild dance movements in her vicinity probably won’t be attractive to her. Whereas being more subtle and matching her perceived mood will likely be more attractive to her.
However, a woman might be confidently dominating a dancefloor with intense dance moves.
In this instance being more confident and bold will likely yield better dance results for you.
Genuinely assess whether you have a chance with her given her level of attractiveness. If she is completely stunning, you might feel that she is definitely out of your league. This is fair enough. In this, it might be better to aim for someone who is perhaps more aligned with your own physical attractiveness. Be honest with yourself, but also make sure your self-esteem is accurate (not too high and not too low).
Types of groups:
Assessing her group is also useful because the group type can influence the chances of you dancing with her. For example:
- A large guy group: If she is with a large guy group this is risky group. This is due to the unknown relationship types the girl might share with each or one particular guy.
- A large girl group: If she is with a large girl group this can also be a risky group. Particularly if the group seems to be protective of her due to her good looks.
This might reduce your chances of dancing with her. - One or two girl friends: If she is with few friends this could be an easier group to dance with. Particularly if the friends seem easy going.
Women have advised that gradually moving to a woman’s vicinity on a dancefloor makes it easier for dancing together. Note the keywords here are gradual and vicinity.
Gradual in this context means not in an obvious way. You don’t want to make a beeline for her, as that is intimidating. Just make it look as though you are finding a better space on the dancefloor to dance. It is also important to not approach from her back as this is where many unwanted advances come from. Approach her gradually from the front so she knows you are not trying to creep up on her.
Vicinity in this context means within 1-2 meters of her, depending on how crowded the dancefloor is.
You don’t want to go right into her personal space bubble. This bubble shrinks or contracts depending on how crowded the dancefloor is, but STILL EXISTS. At this stage, you just want to be within her line of sight. This means she has the chance to notice you more without immediate pressure.
So, you are now within the line of sight of a woman that you want to try and dance with. What do you do now?
Advice by women is that a woman is generally very aware of who is in a club or party. She will likely have already seen you (even if she pretends she hasn’t). And generally already made up her mind as to how physically attractive you are, and if you are:
- Physically attractive: But if you are innitialy in this category, poor dance skills can bump you down into category 2.
- Not physically attractive: Generally speaking, no amount of great dance skills will hange her mind about you.
The importance of first impressions. - Unsure: Be aware that if you are in this category, good dance skills can raise your status into category 1.
Indicators of interest:
To get some sense as to how interested she is in you, can go three ways, as advised by women:
Your eye contact:You can signal that you might be interested in dancing with her by giving her eye contact AND smiling.
This is one of the least intrusive ways to start the process of engaging a woman like a gentleman.
But, remember there is such a thing as too little and too much eye contact. Also smiling too broadly or too little. Too little and you risk not being noticed. Too much and you will come across as creepy/cringey.
After the first bit of eye contact, you will be in her head. Now is the time to dance well and show her you are a cool kind of guy.
- Try and repeat the eye contact 1-2 more times after a song or so (whilst giving her a nice smile).
- Notice if she smiles back
- Or giggles with her friends
- Or you find her looking at you after you have glanced away from her.
- A fun trick is try poking your tongue out at them like a kid. This is fun and makes you stand out.
If she does the above, then there is a good chance that she might be interested in dancing with you. Or at least talking with you.
But, be receptive to if she doesn’t smile back or is just returning your look without any warmth. Take that as a sign she is not interested.
Her eye contact:If you find her looking at you:
- Around 3 times
- She smiles with her friends aftewards
- Or maintains eye contact beyond an accidental length
Then these are good signs that she may be interested in you.
It can be useful to have a female friend with you on a night out. Your female friends can notice when other women may be looking at you in an interested way. Or verify if a woman’s look is indeed interested as opposed to an accidental look.
Women have also advised that interest in them doesn’t always have to be through eye contact. It is possible to engage a woman in small talk at a:
- Bar
- Or smoke area
- Or outside of the club
This can be done using small talk topics covered in the next section.
However, be aware this is more intrusive than eye contact and should be treated with more caution as a result.
Restraint in chance conversationsBe aware, that showing some restraint (but not too much) can be attractive.
Let’s say she is very beautiful and she is engaging in conversation with you. Show some restraint by not immediately jumping at any small sign of interest she shows towards you. This will raise your value and generally make you appear less desperate or at least different to other men.
For example, you can tell her she looks really cute tonight, have some small talk, then back off.
This way so she knows you are interested but you are not pushy and you have restraint. You might then see her on the dancefloor and you will be in her head.
Understand that most beautiful women have men desperately trying to get her number. The vast majority of these men are usually too pushy, flirty, sexual, or desperate, or all of these combined.
Have the dignity and restraint to wait for more substantial signals of interest.
A good trait combination is to have:
- The boldness to engage in chance conversations
- The restraint to not be too pushy or flirty
- Have the values of kindness and respect
- Remain genuine and fun
- And the perceptiveness as to how much she did or did not enjoy your small talk.
If it looked like she did not enjoy the conversation by:
- Staying glued to her phone
- Or mentioning her boyfriend
- Or not reciproacting the conversation
Then take those as signals as signs to back off.
‘A woman will have seen you (even if she pretends she hasn’t) and already made up her mind as to how physically attractive you are and if you are a ‘yes’, ‘no’ or ‘maybe’.’
Sarah, 27, club dancer and dance teacher.
Accurately read signals of interest:
This ‘interest confirmation’ is a step that many men also fail to do, particularly in clubs. It is very important to get some sense of a woman’s interest level, prior to dancing with her.
Far too many egotistical men think that one random glance from a woman is her signaling that she wants them. It’s generally not as flippant as this.
Also, far too many men drink to excess and then start to approach and touch women on a club dancefloor. They do this because they wouldn’t know what to do if they were sober. And don’t care when they are drunk. DON’T BE ONE OF THESE.
Take rejection well and generally not personally:
Always remember to be a gentleman on a dancefloor.
And be receptive to indications of interest or non-interest and react appropriately.
Numerous women have advised that there may be multiple reasons for a woman’s lack of interest. It may not be because she finds you creepy or that you lack attractiveness or skills in approaching.
There may be a variety of reasons such as, she may:
- Just want to dance with her friends
- Have a boyfriend
- Not be in the mood to dance with anyone due to hidden issues
- Enjoy dancing by herself more than dancing with someone becuase it limits her movement
- Not want to have to go to the effort of finding out if she can trust a strange man
- Not be looking to meet new people due to her personal circumstances such as going through a tough time in her life
- Have exceeded her threshold for dealing with new people for that night
- Have a general aversion to dancing with a guy due to past experience
- Be tired
- Be about to leave
- Have sore feet
- Have drunk too much.
Also, be aware that you can do the perfect approach and some women don’t know how to react appropriately or kindly. Unfortunately, this can happen where she carries more blame than you. This is particularly rife in younger women.
Transition tactfully/naturally to dancing with her:This step is the most nerve-wracking. This is where there is the biggest risk of being rejected or things being awkward. This step is of course transitioning naturally to dancing with her.
This all builds on points 6, 7, and 8. It requires:
- Selecting the right approach
- Approaching at the right time
- Using the right approach for the type of woman you are interested in dancing with
- Approaching after (and only after), receiving confirmation of her interest in dancing with you.
General advice from women on transitioning to dancing with them:
Advice from many women on transitioning to dancing with them is as follows:
- Don’t slink around the edge of their girl group like a predator.
- Definitely don’t grab them from behind as women report that is scary, disgusting, not sexy, and low-grade sexual assault. Put yourself in the woman’s shoes and imagine if you were trying to have a fun night out. Then someone proportinally stronger than you decides to come up behind you and start grinding on you without any consent. DO NOT EVER DO THIS.
- Many women don’t know what they are doing either with dancing with a partner. So you can take some comfort in that.
- Don’t just start breakdancing in front of her.
- Check your body odour, level of sweat and breath smell. No one wants to dance with someone dripping in sweat and reaking of body odour/foul breath.
- Ask women to dance (and wait for a response) instead of just grabbing them. Most of them will say yes, but never blur the lines of space and trust.
- Think of women as people first (not women first) with feelings and a story just like you. Not some mysterious species.
Don’t alienate them to the point where unnaceptable behaviour becomes acceptable.
How to dance with shy or not confident women:
If the type of woman is shy or not confident then:
- The right approach will generally be to match her mood and level of moves.
- This will make her feel more comfortable and less out of place. When people feel comfortable they are more likely to want to dance.
- This might look like gradually/casually facing her
- If she reciprocates the face-off, then showing each other a few dance moves before complimenting her on her dance skills.
- Suddenly you now have stood out from the crowd and are less of a stranger.
How to dance with bold or confident women:
If the type of woman is bold, has high energy, and is very confident then:
- The right approach would generally be to match her energy and boldness.
- This might look like putting on your best dance moves
- Or raising the level of eye contact to see if she reciprocates
- Or if she is in the middle of a dance circle then engaging her in a mock dance battle.
You get the idea.
Remember to keep things natural with small talk:
Women have advised that if you feel the need to break the ice then consider these small talk topics. This can keep things feeling natural.
Remember to speak slowly, clearly, and loud enough. Also don’t speak so close that she can feel your breath. Try and have a cute/cheeky smile, and have some eye contact (but don’t stare).
Small talk topics can include:- Who is she with?
- Is she wearing anything interesting (bracelet, bag, shoes, peircing, phone, earings, etc.)? Avoid comments about her body or immediate clothing such as her dress.
- Is she drinking, if so what?
- Does she look happy, bored, grumpy, sad, excited?
- Does she have an accent, if so where is it from?
- What does she do? Is she looking around, or is she texting a lot, or is she dancing, or waiting for a drink?
- What sort of music might she like?
- A simple ‘hi, I am… what is your name’ or ‘hey, hows it going’ can also work.
Another tip in the name of keeping things natural is to avoid overthinking how you will approach her, do some thinking and preparation but not overly so.
A general rule is once you receive the confirmation that she might be interested in dancing with you (as mentioned above), act on it within 5 seconds.
This will force your brain to not overthink it and to remain natural and calm whilst also preventing her from thinking you are stalking her.
Be receptive/attentive to her body language:
An important note here is, not to force anything and also stay calm and receptive to her signals. If you are getting the sense that she doesn’t really want to dance with you because her reciprocation to your approach is:
- Half-hearted
- She keeps checking her phone after you have approached her
- She keeps looking at her friends
- Facing away from you.
Then chances are she would rather not be dancing with you, and that’s okay, you will just need to back off.
This can happen even you are a good dancer and followed the previous 8 steps, as dance styles sometimes don’t align. Advice by women is to accept rejection gracefully.
The good news is that you intelligently hedged your bets by seeking some sort of interest confirmation before approaching. Dancing with women is a calculated risk.
Advice by women on this matter is if you are rejected, don’t approach too many girls after this as the next girls will have noticed your rejection and it makes you look desperate, plus it makes them look like ‘just the next best option’.
‘If you are rejected, accept it gracefully, and don’t approach too many girls after this, as the next girl will have noticed your rejection and it makes you look desperate, plus it makes them look like ‘just the next best option’.’
Michelle, 35, dance teacher.
On the flip side, if she looks like she is enjoying herself and seems to appreciate your attention and dancing ability, then that’s a good sign to keep dancing.
So be receptive to her body language and cues and react appropriately.
What sort of dance moves you should do when dancing with a woman:So, you have arrived at the actual stage of dancing with a woman, without embarrassment or awkwardness and status intact.
The next hurdle is to know what sort of dance moves you should do with a woman. There are a variety of choices out there. For example, do you:
- Do intense footwork
- Maintain lots of eye contact
- Face her front-on all the time or sometimes side-on
- Take her hands and do partner dancing
- Move in close and move your hands to her hips, etc.
The best cue that you can use to determine the above, is the music and the woman.
Cues from the music:
- If the music is fast and intense, then chances are you wont be holding her hands and twirling her. The chances are you will be both energetically doing solo dance moves.
- But if the music is slow and romantic, then moving in close might be more fitting.
- If the music is a latin pop song, then holding hands and twirling around each other could be more fitting. You can make it fun and pretend to be the next Enrique Iglesias and Jennifer Lopez (famous latin pop stars).
Cues from the woman:
Cues from a bold/confident woman:While you are dancing with her, try and notice what she naturally prefers to do. For example:
- Her amount of eye contact
- Which direction her body faces towards you (side-on vs front-on, etc)
- How close she is dancing to you
- How fast her movements are, etc.
You can use these cues to inform you of how to dance with her.
For example, if she is:
- Maintaining lots of eye contact then feel free to return that eye contact
- Dancing quite close to you then that is generally a signal that she would want to do intimitate dancing. Your hands in this case might be on her hips.
- Dancing with a serious look on her face becuase she is really into the music then match that.
- Or somewhat mocking the music by doing silly dance moves then try and match that too.
It is generally easier to take cues from the woman instead of imposing your own cues. This is due to the power imbalance between you. Aka, you are generally the stronger, probably taller, more naturally dominant of the two genders). So it is generally safer if the women get some control of the situation.
However, if you see the woman struggling to decide what to do then propose your own moves. But be a gentleman about it.
Cues from a shy/not confident woman:Identify if the woman is not too confident with dancing (using your observations about her type from point 6). Then try and identify what sort of dance actions she might like but not want to instigate due to shyness. Or due to expectations of men traditionally being the first ones to make a move in this sort of context.
For example, she might want to hold hands. But if she reached out and took your hands then her friends might judge her for being that bold.
This sounds out of date, and it is, but in reality, these thoughts are still occurring in both genders. This is a fascinating display of the wide spectrum of what constitutes masculine vs femine behaviour. This is particularly prominent in a more vulnerable space such as dancing with the other gender.
The common ways women might indirectly communicate their desire for more intimacy is by displaying subtle cues such as:
- Flipping her hair
- Smiling lots
- Eye contact
- Laughing lots
- Her body language
- How much she is talking to you in your ear.
These can give you some indication of whether an increase in intimacy is warranted by holding hands, etc. BUT, tread with caution, if in doubt, stick to a ‘no touching’ policy.
You can also test the waters by gently holding her hands. Or experimenting with different dance moves and seeing if she is enjoying herself. If not, go back to more safe dancing.
A general tip if she is not too confident is to try giving her a few gentle spins.
But don’t wrench her arm, this is where your skills in partner dancing from point 4, are useful.
‘Once a woman has accepted your invitation to dance, don’t take that as an opportunity to grind, hump, or touch her, just keep dancing and having fun.’
‘Grabbing our hips and swaying and grinding? This is boring to me. Show off some real dancing, good or not.’
Jessica, 23, club dancer,
Maria, 32, club dancer.
General advice from women here is:
Once a woman has accepted your invitation to dance, don’t take that as an opportunity to grind, hump, or touch her body, keep just having fun and keep dancing.
Try and make her night enjoyable, focus on the fun aspect, not a sexual end game.
Take care of her, don’t be too into your own dancing, make sure she is okay and you can even protect her somewhat from other rough dancers.
Don’t try and out dance her. If you know you are a better dancer than her then don’t make her feel inadequate, try and be humble.
At this point, you may have been successful in approaching a woman and dancing with her. The next question is: how long do I dance with her?
If the dancing is enjoyable:
The safe bet is to judge if the dancing is enjoyable for both of you. So try and judge when you have established a fun dance connection but BEFORE the novelty of her dancing with you wears out (which can happen after people have just met).
One way to conclude an enjoyable dance experience without wearing out your welcome is to say: ‘I am really liking dancing with you, but I don’t want to keep you from your friends, can I give you my number?’.
This shows that you are fun, courteous, and interested in her. You may have just made her night.
Women have advised that giving her your number instead of asking for her number is a much less stressful situation for the woman as there is no pressure for her to divulge her personal phone number until after she has thought about if she would like to message you.
‘He gave me his phone number rather than asking for mine, which means I got a say in whether or not the contact developed without having to awkwardly reject him or give a fake number.’
Lisa, 21, club dancer.
If the dancing is not so enjoyable:
Another possibility is that the dancing and connection are not that enjoyable for whatever reason. So you might not give her your number by excusing yourself politely by perhaps saying: ‘Thank you so much for the dance, I just need to go to the bathroom’. This way the connection is safely aborted and you will both likely go your separate ways.
However, be sensitive to the fact that she may realize you didn’t enjoy dancing with her, so don’t immediately jump back on the dancefloor with someone else.
If you follow these rules, at the most your chances of dancing well with a woman will rise significantly. At the least, you will be a gentleman with swag, dignity, and confidence who understands how dancing with women works.
How to Dance At A Basic "Good Enough" Level
- Chris MacLeod, MSW
It's hard to avoid dancing entirely in social situations, especially when you're younger. Arguably, everyone should at least become passable at it. It's not as hard to pick up the basics as you may think, and it's smoother sailing once you can join some friends who want to dance and hold your own.
You don't have to reach a particularly high standard
You just need to be good enough that you can get on the dance floor, blend in with everyone else, not look like an idiot, and not feel overly uncomfortable while you're there. (Lots of people are at least somewhat awkward about dancing. That's why they have to down a few drinks and wait for the dance floor to get busy before they step out on it.)
You don't have to look like someone out of a music video. You've just got to be decent enough to get by. Being better than the minimum never hurts of course, but just knowing the basics will put you way ahead of all the non-dancers out there.
If you're straight, try not to worry too much about what the opposite sex thinks. They don't have ultra-picky standards
Straight people don't purely dance to impress the opposite sex, but it is often something they think about.
For guys
Generalization time. Women and men have different ideas of what a good dancer is. Guys often see dancing as a skill to show off. Being better than other dudes on the dance floor is important to them. Their typical image of a "good dancer" is a gymnastic break dancer doing a bunch of flips, or a guy doing a fancy, fluid Popping & Locking routine. A woman's concept of a good dancer is a closer to a passably moving guy who looks comfortable, confident, and like he's having fun.
When a woman wants to dance with you, all she really wants is that...
- You are there with her
- You are dancing with her
- You are not dancing horribly
- You are not being too forward and creepy
For women
This totally sounds like a simplistic stereotype, but most of the time when you're dancing with a guy he's not making a detailed critique of your style.
He's probably just thinking, "Yay! I'm dancing with a woman!" Or if he's watching you dance from farther away, he's likely thinking, "She seems like someone I might want to talk to. I wonder if she'd shoot me down though..." Even if he seems like the most genuinely suave, confident guy ever, he's probably still thinking like that on some level. He's probably fifty times more worried about how his dancing looks to you than the other way around. Even he's an amazing dancer and you're not, he likely isn't holding it against you.
(That was from my observations as a straight guy. I'm not gay so I won't try to write from their perspective, but I can't imagine their standards for dance partners are radically different.)
Try not to worry too much about what strangers think
Easier said than done, but don't use up too much mental energy fretting about how random bystanders are judging you. Occasionally people will snicker and point to people who are dancing because they're really just too nervous to do it themselves.
Random dudes sucking on their beer aren't your audience. Also, like the point above mentioned, your average dancer is more preoccupied with how they look than anything.
If there's one thing to keep in mind it's to be toned-down and low key
Don't be a spaz and try to pull off some fancy moves unless you 100% know you'll look good doing them. It's better to reel yourself in. Over reaching and flailing around is worse than blending in and being a bit boring and unoriginal. Don't feel you have to pull off tons of new moves every second and put on a show for everyone either. It's okay to dance in a simple, repetitive way and just enjoy your friends' company.
Acquire a basic, reliable dancing 'core'
You know when you're watching a movie or TV show and there's a scene set in a dance club, how the extras in the background will often to be dancing in a kind of simple, nondescript way? That's the 'core' I'm talking about. If you know how to do that, then in a lot of situations that's actually all you need.
However, if you want, you can later choose to build off your base and make your style more fancy.
To get that core stand in front of a mirror with some not-too-fast music on, or just read along and imagine you're doing the following:
- To dance you've got to move your body in time to the beat of the music. The most basic newbie mistake you can make is to move out of sync with the beat. Don't know the beat I'm referring to? Put on a song and listen for the underlying, repeating thump-thump-thump pattern. Every style of music has a different speed. It doesn't take much practice to learn how to hear it.
- Okay, you're just standing there in front of the mirror with some song playing. Now try moving your arms back and forth to the beat slightly, while keeping your legs ramrod straight. You'll notice that looks totally off. So the next most basic thing you've got to do is bounce up and down on your knees. So keep everything else still, and just move your knees up and down to the music.
- That still looks weird, since you're just going up and down like a piston. So rotate your torso a bit in time with your knee movements, a little like you're skiing. Keep your torso fairly loose and relaxed.
- That's looking better, but your arms are still stiffly hanging at your side. So try relaxing them a bit and let them swing up and down with your knee bends and torso rotations.
Once you're standing in one spot, bouncing on your knees, turning your torso a bit, and moving your arms somewhat, that's about the absolute bare minimum you can do to be considered dancing. Like I said, sometimes that's all you need. If you didn't know how to dance at all, and stopped right here, that's a lot better than nothing.
However, while still staying in the realm of dancing in a super generic 'core' way, you can do little things to spice up the bare minimum:
- Don't just limply swing your arms, get your shoulders into it.
- Take steps side to side, or back and forth.
- Mix up your arm movements.
- Nod your head.
- Do little pivots or twists on one foot, or both feet.
- Don't just slightly rotate your torso, move it back and forth, or from one side to the other.
- Pick up one foot ever so slightly, then the other, to kind of march in place. Don't overdo the movement and look like a robot, just move your feet a tad.
- Mix up the possible arm, torso, and leg variations. Find a combination that looks good and do it for a while, then switch to another one. Don't change things up to the point where you're doing something new every half a second. That looks too scattered.
At this point you're hardly going to win a dance competition, but you're at the level of those movie extras, and 75% of the people you'll see out at a bar. At this point you really could develop no further in your dancing ability and be able to get by on a dance floor for the rest of your life.
The thing with this basic core is that it's pretty adaptable to the standard kinds of music you'll come across.
If you're dancing to Hip Hop, just make all your movements a little more Hip Hop-ish. If you're dancing to retro 80's Pop, just make all your moves a little more cheesy and energetic.
Add some more fancy moves and sequences onto your core if you want to
If you dance in a basic way you'll get by, but you won't stand out a ton. If you want to look a little slicker you can start adding in some canned movements, or sequences of moves. There's more of a Risk/Reward thing going on at this stage. You've got to work at it more as well. Dancing generically is safer and easier. If you try to pull off some awesome routine and bungle the execution you'll look clueless or goofy. You need to practice to make sure you look good. Some places to learn new moves are:
- By watching strangers dancing at a club and stealing ideas from them.
- By watching your friends dance.
- By watching movies or music videos.
- Through online video tutorials.
- Through dancing-oriented video games.
- By experimenting and trying to come up with some moves of your own.
- By taking an actual class.
The best way to learn is to just practice
If you get into the habit of dancing around at home in the spare moments you're listening to music it won't be long before you start to get the hang of things. After that the more time you put in, the more you'll refine your style.
Get in front of a mirror, put some good music on, and start dancing to it in the basic way I mentioned above. Remember, if your instinct is to jump around a lot or be a bit spazzy, consciously tone yourself down. Try to get comfortable with the typical, boring way of dancing first. A lot of the time on actual dance floors you won't have that much room anyway, so if you only practice moves that requires a lot of space you'll be put in an awkward spot when you end up somewhere more packed.
One way to deliberately practice is to try working on one aspect of dancing at a time, then putting the pieces together.
This may not look good in the moment, but it'll let you concentrate on and isolate certain aspects of how you move. So you might keep everything else fairly still, and only try out different arm movements, or ways of moving your torso. Or you could try different ways of stepping back and forth, or moving only one leg at a time.
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Practice different dancing scenarios
Aside from figuring out how to move your body, there are different situations you'll find yourself dancing under:
Dancing on a dance floor where you have a lot of room
This is the easiest as you have all the space you need, and you can do somewhat more showy stuff if you feel like it. Sometimes the ocean of space can feel like too much to work with or make you feel exposed and self-conscious though.
Dancing on a crowded dance floor
Here your movements are really restricted. When you're practicing make sure to keep your feet rooted to the ground and don't swing your arms out too much.
Try to make your movements look good anyway.
Dancing close and face to face with someone else
The issue here is knocking knees and not being able to extend your arms too far in front of you. Try dancing really close to a wall to get an idea of what it's like. Or you can try dancing really close to a full length mirror. It's totally goofy looking, but it's still a good way to get used to the feeling of being near someone.
Dancing with a partner
Here I'm referring to partner dancing in an informal, improvised way, not doing a specific dance like the Tango. Of course this is something that you can't practice on your own super effectively. Still, you could put your hands out in front of you like you're holding someone's waist or shoulders and practice moving within that restriction. I don't blame you if you don't want to do this. It's definitely a bit silly. Still, if the idea of dancing with someone makes you uncomfortable, practicing like this can take the edge off.
More practical advice would be to take a salsa, swing, or ballroom dancing class, asking your friends to teach you to dance, or practicing with your partner, if you're seeing someone. If it doesn't make you anxious, you could even try going to a club and trying to dance with someone you meet there.
Non-verbal communication is important as well
Body language plays a role in dancing too. It would look strange if someone was dancing to a 70's funk song with the mannerisms and facial expressions of someone listening to 90's Gangsta Rap. You don't want to be too exaggerated or hammy with your body language, but it is something to subtly bring into the equation. The other basic thing about body language is that sometimes the difference between someone who looks good and so-so on the dance floor is their non-verbals. If someone looks uncomfortable and bored, they may come across as dancing poorly. The same movements with some energy and confidence can look fine.
Dancing is a physical activity
Simple tip here.
The better shape you're in, the easier dancing will be. You'll be able to do more, have more energy, and keep at it for longer. Basic things like aerobic fitness, flexibility, and some endurance in your legs and torso help.
Dancing to an unfamiliar style
For the poppy dance music you most typically hear in bars and clubs you can usually get away with dancing in the generic style I outlined earlier. Though if you've ever been to a club that caters to a different scene you'll know other genres of music have their own types of dancing.
If you're in one of these places, it's not the end of the world if you go ahead and dance the usual generic way, and just try to make your movements conform somewhat to that subculture's style. You won't fit in perfectly, but no one is going to run you out of the joint. However, if you're interested in dancing to that type of music more in the future, it's obvious that you'd want to try to learn its more specialized moves.
A semi-warning about dance classes
Without a doubt you'll learn a lot if you a take a class, but sometimes people get a shock when they then go to a club and have to dance spontaneously.
They can't just start swing dancing or bust out a 14-step choreographed Hip Hop routine. There are people who have taken years of dance classes, but they're inhibited when it comes to dancing at clubs. They feel lost, put on the spot, and like they're expected to perform.
Dancing badly on purpose
I think there's a good time and a bad time to dance in a poor or silly way as a joke. The bad time to do it is when you're not comfortable or experienced with dancing, and you dance like goofball to avoid having to do it for real. People tend to see through this, and any humor that comes out of it only has a shelf life of a minute or so.
The good time to do it is when you're with some friends, you all know how to dance properly, and you just throw in the occasional campy movement or routine as a way to joke around and have more fun. It comes off well in this situation because everyone realizes you're doing it because you choose to, not because you're trying to hide how ill at ease you feel.
Drinking to loosen yourself up
Lots of people need to get some alcohol in them before they feel confident enough to hit the dance floor. In a perfect world everyone would feel comfortable dancing stone cold sober, but realistically some of us need a little extra help. Within reason I think this is fine.
When alcohol tends to be helpful is when someone knows how to dance half-decently, but are just a smidgen reserved - most people basically. When drinking tends to backfire is when someone doesn't really know how to dance, and never tries unless they're totally hammered. The results can be pretty sloppy. Things can also get embarrassing if someone is just learning how to dance and is inclined to be spazzy. The alcohol tends to bring those tendencies to the surface.
In conclusion
This is a trite thing to say, but despite everything you've just read, you should just enjoy yourself and not over analyze things. Have fun and don't worry about what other people think of you.
Blah Blah Blah. The end.
How to learn to dance in clubs for a guy
Contents
How to move on the dance floor without looking ridiculous and clumsy - this question has probably worried the representatives of the stronger sex ever since the synchronized movements of couples in a waltz or mazurka. For at least a century now, men have had to guess what a profitable disco dance should be like. Unfortunately, even professional choreographers will not answer this question. But we will try to highlight the basic rules. nine0003
Hop and R'n'B
Rules to follow
Relax
Let's tell you a secret: most guys on the dance floor don't look stupid because they haven't taken lessons in dance studios and can't tell tectonics from r'n'b , but because they do not catch the rhythm of the music and cannot relax. And if no one usually pays attention to the first, then the second immediately catches the eye of others.
Hence the first rule: listen to music and let your body dance freely.
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Choose a style
If you are a frequent discotheque visitor, you should choose a certain dance direction in which you will move on the dance floor. Of course, this will depend on the music that the DJ will put on, but for ten years now hip-hop and electronic music have not left the clubs. Therefore, you can master the basic movements of either one or the other. The "electronics" elements are a bit simpler, so it might be worth starting with them. Video tutorials to help you! nine0003
Sign up for a trial class
Try to vary your movements
If after watching the videos you still can't feel comfortable on the dance floor, you should consider signing up for a dance studio. An experienced teacher, a company of like-minded people and regular classes will quickly do their job, and you will finally be able to relax and stop having complexes while dancing. Plus, to the envy of your peers, you will no longer dance like a “newbie”.
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Remember that everything is for fun
If you do somersaults on the court for ten minutes with a tense face, and then return to the table sweaty, your friends are unlikely to appreciate it. Understand that dancing is not a competition, but a completely cultural form of recreation. As they say, relax and have fun!
Let it all flow
Let go of your body and emotions, surrender to the music and move without paying attention to others. The tension in the dance is the main obstacle. Stop thinking about movements, no one will notice them in the crowd and darkness anyway. nine0003
How girls will evaluate movements on the dance floor
Perhaps the results of a study by scientists from Northumbria University will help answer the question of how to learn to dance in clubs for a guy. Experts studied which dance moves performed by a representative of the stronger sex attract women. The places were distributed as follows:
- Head turns;
- Pelvic twist;
- Vigorous leg movements;
- Large amplitude elements; nine0043
- Uninhibited movements.
No matter how strange the rating may look, it is scientifically confirmed. However, many gain self-confidence on the dance floor only after attending a few lessons in a dance studio. By the way, in the Labosa club, there is a chance not only to learn how to move effectively, but also to meet your partner so as not to be alone at the disco.
How to properly dance to club music in a disco
Contents
Dance is body language, and dancing in a club is the only way to draw attention to yourself with this language, because in the crowd and noise it is impossible to talk differently. Steps, turns, tilts, jumps - in the light of strobe lights look spectacular when performed with skill. And it’s not at all difficult to learn them if you follow the advice of professionals and study in a dance studio. New faces are always welcome at Laboca! nine0003
A bit about the clubs
In order to understand how beautiful it is to move to modern club music, it is worth remembering a little about the history of this trend.
The first nightclubs began to open in the 80s of the last century. They constantly gathered young people who demonstrated the latest innovations in dance elements on the dance floor. Therefore, the fashion for movement was constantly changing, and eventually turned into a mix of several styles. So for several decades, a whole club culture has developed, which you need to familiarize yourself with before entering the dance floor. The surge in popularity of club dancing led to the opening of special groups in dance schools and made everyone understand that this direction is worth learning. nine0003
The main thing is emotions!
Club dances are distinguished by the fact that they should be comprehended with an emotional component. Only a relaxed, flexible and ready to improvise person will move effectively on the dance floor. The main means of expressiveness of club dance are plasticity, keeping pace, impromptu and stylish appearance. If you were able to discard all the complexes and are ready to relax on the dance floor, consider that you have already received the first lesson in club dancing.
Before deciding how to dance to club music in a disco, choose your key style. Strip plastic, street jazz, hip-hop, go-go, or maybe disco? True, in order to move freely on the dance floor, a beginner dancer will have to master the basic elements of all these directions, and at the same time learn how to combine them with club music, while getting real pleasure from dancing. Pure improvisation, video lessons or classes at a dance school - you choose. But it is worth noting that several master classes in a professional studio will significantly save your time and effort. nine0003
Sign up for a trial lesson
Club movements
Club dance implies no restrictions, looseness and freedom. Movements are performed gently, smoothly, with a small amplitude. There are no complex elements, high jumps, flips and splits. Low slopes are also not welcome, they look vulgar. But different types of swing always look good. To master the basic swing, you should start by shaking your head to the beat of the music.
Then beat the rhythm with your hand or foot, and then move on to springy movements with the whole body. Swinging the torso is performed by tilting the body forward and backward, and swinging with the help of the knees - by bending and unbending the legs to the music and connecting the foot: at the expense of "and" move the socks, pushing the heels away, on "one" - rest on the heels and spread the socks . nine0003
Don't forget your hands. Movements should look stylish, but at the same time remain safe, after all, you have to dance on the dance floor: one awkward movement with your elbow - and your neighbor is knocked out. Therefore, the elbows should be kept close to the body, and the shoulders should be moved mainly. Try to sharply raise and lower your shoulders to the beat of the music, repeating the same movements with your hands. Now add the head, body and legs. Of course, you are not the king of the dance floor yet, but you are already moving in the right direction.
Another move with the hands - the movement of the pharaoh.
Place your right hand on your left shoulder and your left hand on your right. To the beat of the music - for "one-two" hands are crossed. Further, the girl can unhook her hands and smoothly lower them to her hips, and the young man can open his hands and put his thumbs on the shoulders of the corresponding hands. On "four", stretch your arms forward, leaving all fingers bent, except for the thumb and forefinger.
The most versatile movement of the arms is to move them behind the head so that the elbows are parallel to each other. Girls can continue the element by performing a wave with the whole body, and young people can lower their head down, thereby drawing attention to their legs. nine0003
On the dance floor, do not perform amplitude movements with arms and legs, push and move ambiguously, if the desire to attract the attention of the opposite sex is not in the first place. The abundance of waves with the hips and the movements of the hands stroking themselves do not look like flirting, but rather give a very clear signal to action to other party participants.
