TEACHERS

Celebrating 10 years, Prana Yoga Center was founded in 2001 by Gerhard & Alexandra Gessner. A long-time La Jolla resident and Yoga instructor of 28 years Gerhard fulfilled his dream of offering his love and passion for Yoga in a beautiful, light-filled space in downtown La Jolla.

Since 2006 Prana has established one of the most reputable and comprehensive teacher training programs in San Diego, including a partnership with YOGAWORKS, bringing their Advanced 300-Hour Teacher Training to San Diego.

Prana Yoga has been voted "Best Yoga Studio" by La Jolla Light and La Jolla Village News for several years. And again in 2011, Prana Yoga received a "Readers Choice Award" in the category BEST YOGA STUDIO in La Jolla.

Gerhard E. Gessner, E-RYT 500, Owner/Director
Director of Prana Vinyasa Yoga Teacher Training Program, Yogaworks Teacher Trainer & Mentor 
Gerhard is founder and director of Prana Yoga Center. He has been a student of Yoga for over 28 years and is trained in a variety of different styles of Hatha Yoga, including Ashtanga, Iyengar, Ananda and Contact Yoga. His non-dogmatic and unique Vinyasa style combines these different influences and is tailored to the needs of his students. More...

Alexandra Oehmigen-Gessner, MA, R-YT, Director
Alexandra is a certified Yoga instructor and has been practicing Yoga since 2000. Together with Gerhard she manages the everyday business of Prana Yoga. Her professional background is in writing, marketing, PR and business management.

Please contact her at info@prana-yoga.com with any questions or inquiries.

Amy Jo Hearron - Vinyasa Flow

Through her yoga classes, Amy Jo shares personal challenges and discoveries as a way to connect with humankind and intensify her own understanding of self and others. Teaching since 2002, she teaches a style of yoga that integrates deep breath with mindful movement... More...

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Arati Lane - Happy Back Yoga, Prenatal Backcare
Arati Lane has been teaching Yoga since 1989 after living and studying Yoga and meditation in India and Southeast Asia for several years. After teaching and studying Jivamukti, Ashtanga & Vinyasa Yoga, she now focuses on teaching Hatha Yoga, Pre-& Postnatal Yoga, Happy Back Yoga, Flow Yoga, women’s Yoga, Yoga for kids & infant massage, More...

Debora Wayne - Hatha, Restorative & Yin Yoga
A counselor, healer, and educator, Debora Wayne has been involved in the world of Dance, Fine Art, and the Healing Arts since early childhood.  An ex-professional Modern Dancer, Debora discovered her passion for Yoga in 2001. As a Certified Yoga Alliance Instructor, Debora is dedicated to assisting students of all levels in experiencing how the practice of yoga can benefit their health & inspire their daily lives. More...

Jen Snyder - Vinyasa Flow

Jen has been practicing yoga since 1999 under teacher, Gerhard Gessner.  She received her 200 hour certification through Yoga Alliance at Prana Yoga Center and is trained in Vinyasa Flow style. Jen's classes focus on building strength and flexibility while moving with the breath to create inner calm.  She is married and a mother of two, and believes in balance, inner peace and good health. More...

Hari Das Kaur (Mimi Trotter) - Kundalini Yoga & Meditation
Mimi is a Certified Kundalini/Meditation Instructor Level II, trained directly by Yogi Bhajan, the world-acknowledged Master of Kundalini yoga. Mimi has been practicing and teaching Kundalini yoga and meditation for over 20 years and is also known by her spiritual name "Hari Das Kaur", which means Servant of God. More...

Heather Fenwick - Vinyasa Flow
Heather Fenwick first practiced yoga on the beach in 2002 after migrating to San Diego from the East Coast. Her first teacher training in 2005 (Yoga Works) sparked a deeper interest in the art of yoga. She has since traveled solo though India and Thailand, diving into the roots of the tradition, as well as studying meditation, massage and holistic medicine. More...

Ingrid Yang, E-RYT 500 - Vinyasa Flow, Cancer Therapy Yoga, Yogaworks Training Mentor
Ingrid embarked upon her yoga journey in 1999 at the Jivamukti Yoga Center in New York City, where she studied directly under David Life and Sharon Gannon. Having been drawn to yoga due to multiple injuries from long distance running, Ingrid began to discover the healing powers of yoga extend beyond the asana practice. More...

Jason Cull
Jason is a registered Yoga instructor, lifeguard and personal trainer and also holds a BA in Physical Education with an emphasis in Athletic Training. He began practicing Yoga in 1997. After taking his first class, he left with a natural high that has inspired him ever since. He knew from that day on that Yoga would always be a part of his life. More...

Jeanne Cummings - Vinyasa Flow
Jeanne left the corporate world in 2004 to pursue full time study of the body mechanics and teaching disciplines of Pilates and Yoga.

In February 2005, Jeanne continued Pilates training under Romana Kryzanowska and Jay Grimes, protégés of Joseph H. Pilates which led her to open up her own studio in Del Mar, CA. More...

Jeni Oh - Vinyasa Flow

For Jeni, the oldest daughter of a minister, spirituality and faith has always been integral to all aspects of her life. An athlete from childhood, Jeni began her yoga journey at the gym in the mid 90s and initially approached yoga as she had with dancing, running, and soccer thinking of yoga as a purely physical practice. Yet, when Jeni began to practice Bikram Yoga in 2006, she suddenly felt the power of yoga: the physical, mental, and spiritual paths in her life blissfully merged. More...

Merrin Muxlow - Vinyasa Flow

Liza DiGaetano, E-RYT 500
Liza DiGaetano, E-RYT 500, has been teaching yoga since 2003. Liza is currently a member of Tripsichore Yoga Theatre (www.tripsichore.com), an international performance company that is known as the "Cirque de Soleil" of yoga. She has studied a variety of yoga styles through which she derived her own creative approach to Power Vinyasa. More...

Rachel Krentzman, RPT, E-RYT, CPI - Happy Back Yoga
Rachel Krentzman is the founder and director of Embody Yoga and Physical Therapy Centers. She received her degree in Physical Therapy from McGill University (Montreal, Quebec) in 1996 and has worked in a variety of acute care, rehab and outpatient facilities. More...

Stefanie Gaines - Hatha Yoga
Stefanie found Yoga in 2003 and was immediately inspired by the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual transformation she went through as a practitioner and in her life. With a strong desire to share the benefits of yoga with others, she received her 200hr. Vinyasa instructor certification (2008) and completed the YogaWorks 300hr. Professional Program (2010), both under the mentorship of Gerhard Gessner at Prana Yoga Center in La Jolla. Stefanie's classes are strongly influenced by her mentor with a focus on alignment, breath, and the natural flow of postures. More...

Vicki Abrams, RYT, CCE, IBCLC, Yoga for Pregnancy
Vicki is a Childbirth Educator, International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, Yoga Instructor and the Director of the Childbirth Education Program at the Chopra Center for Well Being in La Costa. More...

Shauna MacKay - Hatha & Vinyasa Yoga
Shauna teaches an alignment-based class that emphasizes stability and strength as well as flexibility and moving with breath. Although she enjoys teaching an energetic class, her ultimate goal is to help students experience the peace within. More...

Roman Yaroshenko
Roman is a certified Yoga instructor who has been teaching Yoga for seven years. His Vinyasa Flow/Ashtanga Improv class is inspired by the tradition of Ashtanga Yoga, integrating postures from the Primary and Second Series in a unique sequence. More...

Sara Deakin RYT 500 - Vinyasa Flow, Intro to Vinyasa
Sara has been practicing Yoga since 1999. Like so many people Sara began Yoga for physical benefits. With numerous knee and shoulder injuries from competitive tennis and running, she turned to Yoga for rehabilitation. The therapy went far beyond her joints, and started to resonate in her mind and spirit. From surfing, to traveling, to being a student of natural medicine, she has been able to integrate yoga philosophy into all aspects of her life. More...