All of our teachers are certified Barkan Method Hot Yoga instructors

      Ed Gergler (pictured with Jimmy Barkan) was raised in Williamstown, NJ and spent 28 years working as a heavy labor construction pipe worker until he was in a near fatal car crash, leaving him with chronic back pain. After months of rehabilitation and pain management efforts, doctors wanted to perform surgery on his back to try to relieve his pain.
Introduced to hot yoga while weight lifting at a local fitness club, Ed found the many benefits of hot yoga and incorporated them into his fitness regimen. Ed turned again to hot yoga for its therapeutic purposes to help in his back pain and to avoid surgery. Hot yoga has helped him to recover from the auto accident and continues to help him overcome persistent physical injuries he acquired through years of heavy labor. Ed is certified in both Bikram Hot yoga and Barkan Method Level 1 and Levels II / III Vinyassa. Given the opportunity to open a hot yoga studio in 2010, Ed chose to make his passion for yoga and sharing its benefits with others his primary purpose. He is now the owner of the Barkan Method Hot Yoga Studio of South Jersey in Hainesport, NJ.
Outgoing and sincere, Ed is truly committed to sharing hot yoga with others in hopes that they may benefit as he has. His positive, energetic and hands-on approach to helping students achieve their full potential in class is both comforting and inspiring.

    Sandy Gergler (pictured with Jimmy Barkan) has been practicing hot yoga since 2003. She was hooked instantly and loves hot yoga for the physical and mental benefits it provides. Practicing six times a week for a year prepared Sandy to go to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida in the summer of 2010 to get certified by Jimmy Barkan to teach hot yoga. She got her Level 1 certification in  2010, and her level II / III Barkan Method certification in 2011.
As a high school teacher of chemistry, she teaches part time at the studio she co-owns with Ed and part time at their home studio. She says,” I find the idea of always being able to improve my practice challenging and exciting. While I use the yoga as a physical workout for the body, I have definitely noticed how it changed the rest of my life; mind and spirit as well. I am enjoying the journey and always working to attain greater peace.”
Sandy finds yoga to be central to maintaining balance in her life. She wants to continue to learn and grow in her hot yoga practice and in her teaching at the Barkan Method Hot Yoga Studio of South Jersey. 

      Brianna O'Neal started practicing Hot Yoga in June 2010 at Barkan Yoga South Jersey. It was her first experience with Hot Yoga, and after one class she realized the intensity of the workout as well as the calm it can bring. In a few months she noticed the difference yoga made in her knees and ankles after running injuries and years of playing rugby in college. The addition of yoga to her regular fitness routine made an immediate difference. Through learning proper breathing, alignment, stretching, and the postures all areas of fitness improved. After a year of dedicated practice she decided to attend Jimmy Barkans Level 1 training in Ft. Lauderdale. She completed the training in July 2011 and began teaching immediately at Barkan Yoga South Jersey.  Brianna earned her Bachelors Degree in Health Science and Physical Education at Lee University in 2006, she currently resides in Lumberton NJ.

  Ashley Symons was first introduced to Bikram yoga by Sandy and Ed in 2008. After one session in their home studio Ashely had fallen in love with hot yoga. She continued to practice privately with Sandy and Ed until they opened the Barkan Method Hot Yoga studio in Hainesport. Initially Ashley enjoyed the practice because it helped with knee and back pain. However, she soon realized that the biggest benefit of a consistent yoga practice was mental peace and clarity. After experiencing the full benefits of yoga, Ashley decided to attend The Barkan Method Level 1 training in the summer of 2011. Upon returning, she immediately began to share her practice with others. As a high school Psychology teacher, Ashley frequently infuses psychology and yoga into both her yoga and academic classes. She loves the idea that yoga is not just an exercise. Instead it is a way to take control of ones life!

     Katie Gallagher starting practicing Bikram Yoga in the winter of 2009 to relieve stress on her knees caused by years of running. She was amazed by the intense work out and euphoric high she received after every practice, and immediately began practicing five times a week. Within a few weeks all knee and back pain ceased and is yet to return. Katie fell in love with the mind, body, and soul connection that Yoga provided her, and decided to attend Jimmy Barkan's teacher training in June of 2010. Katie has been a Health and Physical Education teacher at The Burlington County Institute of Technology since 2006, where she also Coaches Cross Country and Softball. Katie played Lacrosse at Rowan University where she earned her Bachelors degree in Health and Exercise Science in 2005. She currently resides in Mount Laurel, New Jersey.