A great many recreational and semi-pro musicians find themselves saying to themselves, "I know the riffs of the players that I idolize, but something is missing"
 
All of this here should be helpful in building a greater rhythmic understanding. Everything here is written with the beginning guitar player in mind but each successive post will get more in depth.
 
Quite often, that missing something is rhythm. Executing rhythms with charisma and feel is an art in and of itself. Now what I'm about to suggest may insult the artistic sensibilities of many of us, but it's one of those gotta do it sort of things. If you don't have a metronome, get one! Even though I have the gear to create killer production loops to practice along with I don't because in the beginning of metric training the focus should be on the player. You and me!
 
Take one chord. Like the Ami at the top left of the chords listed below.
 
 
 
We'll use this chord to begin our rhythm practice. Set your metronome to 60 beats per minute (bpm). We'll first try a whole note value. Right now your metronome is annoyingly clicking away. Start counting along with it...
 
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4.
 
Now when you get to beat ONE, strum the Ami chord with a solid downstroke and let it sustain for 4 beats. From here on out, the bold faced red number will indicate where you're supposed to strum and the regular black numbers indicate the beats that the chord or note is intended to ring for.
 
Whole Note [sound sustains for 4 beats]
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
 
Half Notes [sound sustains for 2 beats]
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
 
Quarter Notes [sound sustains for 1 beat]
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
 
Now for 8th notes, we have to subdivide each beat into two parts because each 8th note is equal to half of a beat. These two parts are called the downbeat (1) and the upbeat [or "+" of the beat]. When you're counting along with your metronome, tap you foot on each number. These are the downbeats. When your foot comes off the floor in between downbeats, this is called the and (+) or upbeat. When you're strumming chords in an 8th note rhythm try your best to strum down on the downbeats and strum up on the upbeats. It'll feel almost as if your strumming hand and foot are attached like a marionette. So strum down on 1 and then up on the "and" of one. Keep the metronome where it is at 60 bpm. The +'s of the beat will fall in between clicks.
 
1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +
 
Lastly, here is a breakdown of how the rhythmic pyramid functions.