This One Is Personal
Tim Washburn is not just a referring partner to Longhouse Submission Grappling. He is an instructor there. A first-degree Cascao Jiu Jitsu black belt since 2019, training since 2002, Tim has over twenty years on the mat and teaches alongside head instructor Brandon Wilson and black belt Justin McHugh.
When a Longhouse grappler gets hurt and needs a kinetic chain assessment, Tim already knows how they move, how they train, and what the mat demands of their body. That is a different kind of partnership than a referral card on the front desk.
What Longhouse Is
Longhouse Submission Grappling is a veteran-owned no-gi jiu jitsu academy in Grand Blanc founded in 2024 by Brandon Wilson, a former U.S. Army Paratrooper and black belt under Walter "Cascao" Vital. Three black belt instructors. More than 50 years of combined experience. A philosophy built on honor, brotherhood, and relentless improvement.
The academy has already drawn national attention. Students have been featured on the Joe Rogan Experience, one of the world's most-listened-to podcasts, putting Longhouse on the map for serious grapplers well beyond Grand Blanc.
The facility matches the instruction. More than 2,000 square feet of mat space, a dry sauna, modern showers, a pro shop, a weight area, and a Mead Hall viewing area. Classes run seven days a week including 6am sessions for grapplers who train before the rest of the world wakes up. New members can start with a free trial.
The Black Belts on the Mat
Brandon Wilson, Head Instructor
Former U.S. Army Paratrooper. Black belt under Walter "Cascao" Vital. B.S. from the University of Michigan. Founded Longhouse in 2024 with a veteran's discipline and a competitor's eye for technique.
Tim Washburn, Instructor
First-degree Cascao Jiu Jitsu black belt since 2019. Training since 2002. Twenty-plus years of mat experience. Also the founder of Thera Performance Lab, so the person assessing your kinetic chain knows exactly what grappling asks of it.
Justin McHugh, Instructor
Black belt from Victor "El Torito" Torres. Fifteen-plus years of experience. Multiple IBJJF tournament wins. Competition-tested instruction for grapplers who want to compete and those who just want to roll well.
The Gym That Calls Before the Athlete Disappears
Most gyms let an injured grappler quietly disappear for a few months. The good ones call before the athlete even gets home from the doctor. Longhouse treats grappling as a long career, and a long career requires a body that gets assessed and addressed, not just rested and hoped at.
Grappling loads the body in specific, repeatable ways. The neck under pressure in defensive frames. The shoulders in posts and clinches. The hips in guard. The knees in scrambles. These patterns accumulate, and the grapplers who last are the ones who address them before they become the layoff that costs six months.
The referral runs both directions.
Longhouse sends us the breakdowns. When a grappler needs more than tape and ice, when neck, shoulder, hip, or knee issues keep flaring, or when a sports injury needs a real return-to-train plan, those cases come to TPL. We trace the actual cause, coordinate with the coaches on what the athlete can and cannot do, and build the plan that gets them back on the mat without the same problem returning.
TPL sends Longhouse the athletes. Active adults who come through TPL wanting a serious grappling home, coached by people who can actually roll, get pointed to Longhouse. Grand Blanc is roughly 45 minutes from Lake Orion. For the right training room, that is not a long drive.
Where Grappling Meets the Kinetic Chain
The neck under load
Constant pressure and defensive posture work make the neck a recurring trouble spot for grapplers. We address the cervical and thoracic patterns driving it, often with dry needling for the trigger points that will not release with manual work alone, so neck pain stops being a weekly problem.
Hips and knees in guard and scrambles
Hip mobility and knee control take a sustained beating in grappling. Our sports performance and recovery work keeps those joints loading correctly so they hold up to the volume a serious practitioner puts through them.
Shoulder health for grapplers
Shoulders under frame and post load develop specific compensation patterns that build quietly until they break loudly. Early assessment through TPL finds the pattern before it becomes the injury that ends the season.
Recovery between hard rounds
RX2600 work and targeted manual therapy clear the accumulated load of heavy mat time so the next session starts fresh instead of stacking damage on top of an already taxed system.
In Tim's words
I have been training since 2002. I know what grappling does to a body over twenty years because I am living it. The grapplers who last are not the ones who are built differently. They are the ones who address what is accumulating before it forces the decision for them. Longhouse treats the mat the way it should be treated, as a lifelong practice. That is the environment I want every athlete I work with to train in.
The partnership offer
Longhouse members book the Complete Kinetic Chain Assessment for $79 instead of $99. Same 60 minutes. Same one-on-one with the Doctor of Physical Therapy. Same kinetic chain protocol. Just the partner rate. Book your $79 partner assessment through the dedicated Longhouse link.
Who this is for
- Grapplers carrying a recurring neck, shoulder, hip, or knee issue that keeps interrupting training.
- Competitors who need real return-to-train planning after an injury, not just rest and hope.
- Active adults who want a serious grappling home coached by black belts who can actually roll.
- Lifelong martial artists who value longevity over volume and want a body that lasts as long as the skill.
- Anyone within driving distance of Grand Blanc who wants the best no-gi instruction in the region.
Ready to stay on the mat? Book your $79 partner assessment or reach out via /contact with questions first.