PlyoJam class offers a host of physical benefits

BRENTWOOD, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- It looks like a typical Los Angeles dance class, but instructor Jason Layden makes sure there is something special going on.

"I weave in the jump training, just enough. It's like hiding vegetables from a baby," said Layden, creator of PlyoJam.

Plyo, short for plyometrics, is an extremely popular fitness concept that offers a host of physical benefits.

"Bone density, toning, calorie spikes," he said.

Bone density being a big one, especially for perimenopausal and menopausal women needing to maintain their power and strength.

"And I said, 'Let's create something that's really going to help people burn calories and dance.' And that's really where the idea of plyometrics jump training came," added Layden.

In a one-hour PlyoJam class, each song features a few plyo moves to get in that jump training.

Ski jumps and one-eighties are just two kinds of power moves, but if you're a low impacter, anybody can do it.

"In every routine they show the modifications first because when I first started, I couldn't jump at all," said Carrie Murray of Encino.

Murray lost 35 pounds of baby weight this past year by attending class three days a week.

"People of all ages come - from teenagers to 70-year-old women," said student Britta Slinger, of Santa Monica.

Slinger, who calls herself a non-dancer, loves the challenge.

PlyoJam is offered throughout L.A. at select dance studios. Layden offers teacher training and online training workshops for interested instructors nationwide.

An average, class costs between $15 and $20.