This routine to the song Confident, by Demi Lovato, is one of my favorite routines right now. It’s hot, sexy, fun and CHALLENGING, which completely encompasses what a PlyoJam class is all about. Also, it really does leave you feeling confident. Those snaps are on point. Notice how I add my quintessential Britney Spears flair, but also incorporate the athleticism of jump training throughout the routine. Have fun with this one, and prepare to sweat!
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Written by Stacey Beaman, As told by Jason Layden
I hear it all too often. “I need to lose twenty pounds by next month.” The moment I hear this, I can’t help but cringe because I know this person, although well intentioned, is setting himself or herself up for failure. It drives me crazy, and it DOES NOT work. So today I want to tell you to STOP torturing yourself with these crazy and unattainable goals. STOP setting yourself up for failure. Whatever method you would have to use to lose twenty pounds by next month is certainly not going to be a healthy, realistic lifestyle change that you can maintain, and it will likely end up in weight gain. Which will then leave you sitting on the couch binging on powdered donuts while skipping the very event you wanted to lose twenty pounds to attend. I know…I’ve been there….we all have. So how about you wipe that sugar off your chin (I see you!) and let’s talk about setting realistic goals that will leave you feeling accomplished and proud.
WEIGHT LOSS – 1 pound per week
Seriously guys, you need to pace yourself here. You most likely didn’t gain that fifty pounds in two months, and you aren’t going to lose it in two months. Don’t rush it. I mean, Rome wasn’t built in a day, right? If it were, it would’ve looked like Detroit! (Sorry Michigan peeps) A realistic goal is to lose one pound per week. If you have fifty pounds to lose, you may need an entire year to reach your goal. I know that seems like a long time, but don’t let that throw you into a panic. That year is going to go by one way or another, and we all know time flies, so how about you make each day, each week, each month of that year count, and by next swimsuit season you’ll be feeling light, airy and accomplished. And, most importantly, if you lose approximately a pound per week, multiple studies show that you are likely to MAINTAIN that weight loss. This is key. You don’t want to put in the work just to gain it all back. So remember, slow and steady wins the race. Aim for one pound per week.
EXERCISE – Ease in!
How many times have you decided it was time to lose weight so you hopped on the computer and bought the next available Groupon for an eight week daily boot camp. This is probably not a good idea. I can’t stress enough how important it is to take it slow, especially when you haven’t worked out in a while. There are so many options out there to get in shape! I want to try them all. I consider myself to be fit (okay, REALLY fit), but even I can’t just jump into a new exercise program without taking it slow. I recently took a pilates class and I was sore for days! A new program means you are utilizing different muscles, so regardless of your fitness level, you WILL feel it in the morning. Ease yourself into a new workout. Give your body recovery time. Be sure to treat your body with care as you embark on new fitness adventures, because you definitely don’t want to burn yourself out and give up.
CLOTHING – Buy a new dress!
Still hanging on to that ten-year-old dress because you are bound and determined to fit into it again some day? STOP. Get rid of it. It’s most likely out of style, anyway. Nothing feels better than celebrating your weight loss milestones than buying a new size shirt or a dress style that you once felt uncomfortable wearing. Ok, maybe hang on to ONE pair of your “thin” jeans, just to use as a point of reference, but otherwise CLEAR THAT CLOSET! Make way for celebratory shopping sprees!
CELEBRATE – Treat yo self!
Speaking of celebratory shopping sprees, focus on CELEBRATING! Instead of stressing over those fifty pounds that will take forever to lose, focus on smaller, short term goals. Make yourself a celebration chart with rewards! When you reach ten pounds lost, treat yourself to a massage! When you accomplish a twenty pound weight loss, buy a new purse! When you reach thirty pounds, have a girls day at the spa! I know these rewards cost money, but you are WORTH it! Find things that work for your time constraints and budget, and as they say in Parks and Rec, TREAT YO SELF! It is important to keep your eye on the end goal, but it’s also imperative that you celebrate the accomplishments along the way.
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I think by now we all know that a fit, healthy body does not solely depend on exercise. And, while we are always encouraging you to dance, dance, dance, we also want to share some nutritional tips and recipes to help keep your heart healthy and your body shapely. We’ll try to share a new recipe at least once a month! One of our favorite things to make and keep in the fridge is Quinoa Tabouleh. Quinoa is an excellent source of protein, and this dish is loaded with veggies and bursting with flavor. Make a batch of this on Sunday, and munch on it all week.
Here’s What You Will Need:
1 Cup Quinoa
2 Cups Water (or to punch up the flavor use organic vegetable broth)
1 Bunch Parsley – chopped
3 Green Onions – sliced into thin scallions
3 Medium Tomatoes – small dice
5 Small Persian Cucumbers – sliced length wise and then chopped into 1/4″ half moons (see photo below)
1/2 Medium Red Onion – medium dice
3 Cloves of Garlic – finely minced
Olive Oil (approx. 1/4 cup, but I just toss it on to taste)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Juice of a Medium Lemon (watch those seeds)
**Get creative and add a bit of mint, perhaps some diced watermelon, diced red and yellow bell peppers, or even some feta cheese! However, the recipe above is bursting with flavor as is!**
1. Step one is IMPORTANT!! Dry toast the quinoa in a sauce pan before adding any liquid. Stirring constantly, the quinoa will brown up a bit and smell almost like nutty popcorn! Do this for 4 to 5 minutes.
2. Add your water or vegetable broth to the quinoa and bring to a boil. After it’s boiling, reduce to a simmer. Leave it uncovered and simmering until all liquid is gone. Set aside to cool.
3. In a large bowl toss together your parsley, scallions, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper, and lemon juice. (and anything else you’ve decided to add)
4. Add your room temperature quinoa and mix together! SERVE!!!
This is a beautiful dish, bursting with flavor! And it’s quite lovely, aesthetically speaking! We hope you enjoy!
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I met Stacey Beaman one day at a pool party and we immediately connected. I knew I had a dancer in the making when our shoulders bobbed simultaneously while “Turn Down For What” played in the background. This is the story of Stacey’s journey to a happy healthier self. And yes, a kick ass dancer!!
In early 2014, Stacey had reached her highest weight. She went to the doctor and learned she had reached pre-diabetic levels and had high blood pressure.
This scared her and she realized she needed to make changes. Stacey no longer wanted to live this way, in a body that made her feel trapped. She wanted to set herself free. Goodbye donuts, hello rice cakes
.
Stacey started taking PlyoJam classes in June 2014. SHOCKER….it was HARD!! Here is a photo of Stacey after her first class, exhausted, sweaty and unsure how she was going to continue.
She was sore every day for weeks and weeks. I mean, hobbling around as if she was 95. If it wasn’t for her adorable puppy, Maggie, keeping her company during her daily Epsom salt soak sessions, she may have not been able to persevere.
Forty classes in eight weeks, and twenty-five pounds lost, Stacey was starting to feel amazing.
Part of Stacey’s journey to better health and self love was her four month trip to Europe, where she visited nine countries and 18 cities.
Aside from walking everywhere in Europe, Stacey managed to continue her weight loss by finding dance fitness classes in almost every city she visited! She felt like she was cheating on me and PlyoJam, but it had to be done. It didn’t hurt that she found hot spaniards to dance with, CHEATER!!!!!
When Stacey returned to the states, she hit the dance floor hard, dropping another 35 pounds in five months.
Feeling confident and amazing, Stacey began filming videos for PlyoJam AND even teaching her own class! 5th Harmony has nothing on these gals.
PlyoJam was chosen as a featured workout for a SELF Magazine event in NYC in June 2015. Seventy pounds down and kicking ass, Stacey had the privilege of going to NY and representing PlyoJam. She may have felt lucky, but in fact, the privilege was all mine.
Stacey’s journey was all about weight LOSS, but for me it was a GAIN! Oh, and she has learned that every once in a while it’s ok to splurge on a donut!
Article written by Espi Juarez from Party of One
If you don’t know what Plyojam is, don’t worry I did not know either. I attended a Plyojam class at Moore Dance Studios in Brentwood for the first time this weekend. Going up the elevator I was initially nervous because I did not know what to expect. The night before I decided to look up what “Plyojam” actually was to prepare myself for the experience.
From what I read I discovered that the class intensity comes from Plyometric-inspired move
ments, a form of jump training that is weaved throughout the routines to maximize calories burned. It also consists of dancing non stop to all of the best pop songs. Jason’s song choices jumped from Missy Elliot’s “Work”, Shawn Mendes’s “Stiches”, to Jlo’s “Booty.” I must say i’ve tried everything from pilates to spinning classes and plyojam was actually one of the most fun workouts I have ever done.
Most workout consist of you constantly looking at the clock, but during plyojam you completely loose track of time. I was focused on each movement and making sure I was doing them correctly while listening to my favorite songs playing I forgot I was actually working it.
But I quickly remembered I was working out because I was sweating non stop. After each song I had to take a quick water break just before the next song and dance routine began. It was also a lot of fun to watch Jason engage with the class because he was constantly moving around to make sure everyone had a good view of him.
The danc
e room was full of dancing ladies including Reese Witherspoon right in front of me. And yes I actually followed her moves at times because I couldn’t get a good view of Jason and Reese had a good grip of the routine. I managed to make a few friends after class who told me they attend Ployojam class religiously and it keeps them feeling young and helps keep them in great shape.
Overall my experience as a first timer at Plyojam was amazing. I wish I could have Jason as my personal instructor because he makes working out so much fun. I never knew squatting and jumping could be that fun and bring out your inner Beyonce.
I think we can all agree that dancing is a true source of joy. It is a stress reliever, a soul lifter, a time to let go and lose yourself in rhythm and tempo. Attending a PlyoJam class can almost be a spiritual experience, where we can work out our bodies and minds and be ready to face a new day. Dancing does so many wonderful things for the mind and the spirit, which we could talk about forever! But, today we want to focus on one of the significant physical health benefits that dancing lends our bodies. That benefit is the increase in bone mass, and the prevention and reduction of bone loss.
Did you know that peak bone mass, when bones reach their maximum strength and density, occurs by about age thirty in women? Thirty seems young! We were shocked, too! What this means is prior to age thirty, women should be doing everything possible to achieve a higher peak bone density. After age thirty, women don’t usually see a significant change in their bone density for a while, but it’s extremely important to maintain their peak bone density. And of course, as women reach their fifties, it’s crucial to reduce the chance of bone loss. According to Dorothy Klock, MD, Board Certified Family Physician AND one of our very own PlyoJam students, “After menopause, women begin to experience bone loss, which continues throughout the postmenopausal years and can lead to osteoporosis.” Osteoporosis is a disease that causes bones to become weak and brittle, often leading to fractures and breaks. And, since we love our PlyoJammers and don’t want to see any broken hips or fractured ankles on the dance floor, we are here to stress the importance of keeping your bones healthy and strong. While there are numerous factors that affect peak bone mass including gender, race, hormonal factors, and nutrition, experts agree that exercising is crucial to bone health. Like muscle, bone is living tissue that responds to exercise by becoming stronger.
Specifically, weight-bearing exercises will help to maintain bone strength and prevent loss. What is a weight-bearing exercise? According to Dr. Klock, “A weight-bearing exercise is one in which you must exercise against gravity, such as walking, hiking, tennis, jogging, and DANCING!” An example of a non weight-bearing exercise would be swimming. While swimming is still an excellent form of cardio exercise, it does not include the weight-bearing benefits that other exercises provide. Along with a nutrient rich diet, particularly rich in nutrients such as calcium and vitamin D, we want you to keep those dancing shoes polished and continue to dance, dance, dance! We want our PlyoJam family to be of healthy mind, heart and body, which most definitely includes healthy, strong bones! Whether you are working to achieve a higher bone mass, maintain that mass, or working to prevent the loss of bone mass in your postmenopausal years, dancing benefits women of all ages. Just another bonus in the wonderful world of dance! See you on the dance floor!
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