Thanksgiving is just around the corner. If you are contributing to the Thanksgiving dinner, maybe you are eating as you cook. Realizing that people tend to go calorie crazy when making up the traditional Thanksgiving dinner elements, it’s important to see what you can do to mitigate the intake of those calories. Read Article HERE!
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When Losing Turns Into A Gain
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.
Find Out How Dancing Makes Your Bones Happy!
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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Gerrard Panahon – CFO
Gerrard Panahon is the Chief Financial Officer at PlyoJam, LLC. He manages all the company’s finances and ensures that the PlyoJam dream ship keeps sailing ahead. Gerrard also serves as a Financial Analyst for a nonprofit. Outside of work, Gerrard stays busy cooking up delicious dishes in the kitchen and volunteering for various organizations in the greater Los Angeles area. He holds an MBA from Loyola Marymount University.
Heidi Llovet – Nutritionist, Personal Trainer
Heidi’s background is in dance, fitness and personal training. She is a graduate of UCLA and the Institute of Integrative Nutrition in NY. As a professional dancer for 12 years Heidi was very active, but developed some poor eating habits. Skipping meals, eating too much sugar and not balancing her diet were daily issues for her. A few years after Heidi transitioned from dance to fitness, she added personal training to her repertoire and began to learn more about healthy eating and nutrition.
The Body Department: Intense Dance Workout to Ex’s & Oh’s
Creator and Founder of PlyoJam, Jason Layden, teaches his routine to Ex’s & Oh’s by Elle King. What is PlyoJam? PlyoJam is a hot, edgy dance fitness format out of Los Angeles that provides the intensity level comparable to that of a P90X or Insanity workout, but remains the fun, sexy dance party that so many crave. View full article HERE!
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