From UFC Fighter to Gym Owner: Jonovan Webb on Coaching, Culture, and Longevity

In this episode, I sit down with Jonovan Webb, 3rd degree black belt, UFC and CFFC veteran, and owner of Webb Fitness, who also happens to be the coach who started my Jiu Jitsu journey and helped shape me as both an athlete and a person. We dive deep into gym culture, coaching philosophy, and what it really takes to train hard while minimizing injuries in combat sports. 

We talk about managing ego on the mats, training at high pace without unnecessary damage, leg lock safety and evolution, and how coaches can create environments that keep athletes healthy, progressing, and coming back long term. 

We also get real about injuries, surgery, and the mental challenges of recovery, and how lessons learned on the mats carry directly into life outside the gym.

Episode Highlights:

00:00 – What is Dr. Jiu-Jitsu and who is Jonathan Webb
00:34 – How we met and my journey from white belt through his gym
02:09 – Open-weight competition, big opponents, and the ACL tear story
03:21 – How Jonathan handles “spazzy” students and keeps his room safer
05:17 – Training for competition: pace, intensity, and checking your ego
08:33 – Leg locks, heel hooks, and why bad mechanics cause most injuries
11:22 – My ACL tear, going all-in on leg lock defense, and why I teach them early
17:34 – Jonathan’s path from fighter to coach to gym owner and finding fulfillment
27:25 – Shoulder dislocations, surgery, and the mental grind of rehab
46:15 – Lessons from the mats: failing, resilience, and taking risks off the mat
50:26 – Growth of women’s jiu-jitsu and building a room where women can thrive

Links & Resources:

• Website: webbmma.com
• Instagram: @jonavinwebb @webbfitnessandmma

If this episode hit home, share it with your training partners, drop a five-star review, and be sure to follow so you don’t miss the next one. Oss!

To learn more about Dr. Megan Jimenez, check out her website: doctorjiujitsu.com

Transcript

Narrator [00:00:00] Do you train combat sports? Have you ever been injured? Dr. Megan Jimenez is an Army Orthopedic Sports Surgeon and Jiu Jitsu Brown Bell. This is Dr. Jiu-Jitsu, your go-to podcast for combat sports, military performance, injury prevention, and treatment. New episodes drop the first Friday of each month. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:00:22] Hey guys, I'm Megan Jimenez. I am an orthopedic surgeon and military U.S. Army major. I'm joined today by my good friend and mentor, Jonavan Webb, third degree black belt. He is a UFC and CFFC veteran. He owns the gym that we're at right now, Webb Fitness. And just a good friend of mine. He was where I started my journey from white belt to purple belt until I started moving with. 

Jonavan Webb [00:00:45] Schooling all over the world. Yeah 

Dr. Jimenez [00:00:46] Yeah, but never never stopped it and always came back and thanks. Thanks for taking the time out 

Jonavan Webb [00:00:51] I know, I'm happy to be on it. I'm excited. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:00:54] So we're going to talk a lot about injuries, about owning a school, about coaching, about your fight career, about how you got to where you are, a little bit about how we know each other and kind of what we went through for a long time together. And I appreciate you because you're the reason that I started Jiu Jitsu and stuck with it. 

Jonavan Webb [00:01:09] I don't know, I'm just happy that you kept doing it. So many people come in throughout the years and some people have it, some people don't, but some people who have it just don't stick with it and it's one of the saddest things to see as a coach and I'm very happy that you kept your journey going, because I knew you had it early on, but again, some just don't see it out and commit to what they started. And you've done it and now you're here as a black belt sitting next to me. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:01:40] That's right, that's right. You were the first people I texted after. 

Jonavan Webb [00:01:42] Yeah.

Dr. Jimenez [00:01:43] And I mean I competed what two years ago and I competed here and I said hey I'm competing in New Jersey can you coach me and you were like sure yeah they're at the drop of a hat. 

 Jonavan Webb [00:01:52] In there, was that open division, no late classes? 

Dr. Jimenez [00:01:56] I think my first support Oshii, like one need the two. 

Jonavan Webb [00:02:00] To be nice. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:02:01] She was big and my mom was like, what? She said, well, it's open. And I took it on like three days notice. 

Jonavan Webb [00:02:07] You gotta be a backpack on to play. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:02:08] That was fun. Well, she was very she was so nice to roll with like she could have crushed me and really her hammered me But she didn't she was super nice to train with to to compete with and technique, you know versus just using her weight 

Jonavan Webb [00:02:20] Yeah it's always good. You don't want a spazzy big person. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:02:24] But I did turn my ACL that competition and I remember texting you like, I think I turned my ACL. You're like, no way. 

Jonavan Webb [00:02:30] Yeah, because it didn't even look bad when it happened. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:02:33] No, but the video did. 

Jonavan Webb [00:02:34] Yeah.

Dr. Jimenez [00:02:34] You saw in the video, but, you know, maybe a better surgeon and a better athlete. 

Jonavan Webb [00:02:37] That's the one unfortunate thing about the sport, and I tell everyone who walks through the doors, like, you know, you go play a pickup game of basketball right now, there's a good shot that you're gonna get hurt, you're going to leave with a bloody nose or twisted ankle, something like that. And we're doing a sport where we're literally trying to go for submissions and different arm locks and leg locks and all that stuff, and it's just an unfortunate part of a contact sport. But I feel like for what we do. We don't get injured that much. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:03:08] You know, it's gonna happen, and I tell people it will happen, it is just how do we mitigate. 

Jonavan Webb [00:03:12] Exactly.

Dr. Jimenez [00:03:12] What do you, so we can start here, what do you do at your facility as a coach to mitigate injuries with your students? 

Jonavan Webb [00:03:21] So one, you know, I am not nice to spazzy people anymore. And before it was always like, you just try to be, you know maybe that's just the way they are and just let it go. And now I just don't accept it. You know, if you can't be a good training partner, then you know this isn't the place for you. There's plenty of other gyms you can go find and maybe they'll let you in there. But you know our number one thing is just keeping everyone safe. Almost everyone in here has to go to work the next day, has to get to school, has to figure out ways to pay their bills. Like, you know, risking an injury off of something like that is just not worth it. Again, now, accidents happen, anything can happen. You can walk out the door and twist your ankle. But if we can try to stop it any way that we can in here, we do. And I mean, I'm very vocal with, you know while rounds are going, like, hey, slow down, hey. Do this and I feel like it's helped a lot. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:04:19] I'm the same way and people get upset with me because I'm like don't jump on that person's knee that way Like you are in training and that's a dad He's he's going to work tomorrow and people kind of are like you think you could walk outside and your knee would explode I was like, well, well you could but that's not the point. We're not walking outside 

Speaker 4 [00:04:34] No.

Dr. Jimenez [00:04:34] And our knees can explode and they do. So I'm pretty crazy about that too. The part that I struggle with is when you're trying to train for competition, how do you keep it safe-ish while still trying to get to that 100% training? 

Jonavan Webb [00:04:46] Yeah, so even today we have a lot of people competing this weekend on the big grappling card and you know I was telling them today I want you guys thinking about pace right like have high pace push each other but we the intensity shouldn't be there so it sounds like it's they're opposite things, but you know, I can go at a high speed and a good flow without having to try to smash you or if I grab something and crank it. There's just a difference that you have to learn and you're gonna learn that with experience. And that's why I always like when new people come in, I put them with experienced people because the experienced people can kind of show them how it's supposed to be instead of two like Tasmanian devils with each other. And then with the two competitors going with each other, you know, it's can you check your ego at the door or not, right? You're not gonna win every single. Round every single second, every single minute of training. I'd rather you not win every second of training, I'd better you put yourself in weird positions, figure out ways out, if you can't figure your way out, tap, reset, and then try it again. Not to go off topic, but even for me, when I came up in Jiu Jitsu, it was totally different. There was no leg locks allowed at my gym, all these other things. And I started competing a lot, and then all of a sudden people were hitting me with leg locks. And I was like, I don't know how to stop this. So then in the gym, I would just put myself in the situations and be like, hey, just squeeze my leg and see if you can finish. And I would try it from a bunch of spots and then I would try to get my way out. And then if it hurt, I will just tap and then we will reset. And then I'll try it again. So that's why I try to like, you know, keep on people is like, again, the competition is under the lights. When the cameras are there or you're at a tournament, whatever, that's competition mode. And that's when we got to like, you know, I'm on your shield or with your shield kind of guy, you know. But in the room, you shouldn't have that same mentality. It's all a learning process. And again, your egos are gonna be your biggest killer in here. So if you can just check that ego and not be afraid to tap, even in a bad position. Like sometimes, certain positions, and maybe not a submission, but my ankle's in a weird spot, or my arm's in weird spot. So hey, let's just reset, and I'll just adjust it and go. But again, it's still a battle that we're fighting with everyone. I still fight it. Yeah, but that's what I've been trying to do. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:07:28] So how do you think that the athletes can just switch it on when they compete on a Saturday if they haven't? Like, you don't really finish heel hooks on your partners, right, but in competition you kind of have to put that on, so how do make that switch? 

Jonavan Webb [00:07:41] Well, I mean, there's different things. I mean you're out there, it's kill or be killed. And I think you understand it. If you ever competed before, you know that it's different and the intensity is different. Even the way someone just collar ties you is different than being in here. So if that doesn't wake you up, that's like your own, that's your own issue that you gotta figure out. But even like, so heel hooks is probably the scariest thing in the entire sport, right? Injury wise. Because you don't feel it, right. Because you don't feel it, right? 

Dr. Jimenez [00:08:13] Having gone through it, you really, you're in the, your adrenaline's rushing, running and you don't feel it. 

Jonavan Webb [00:08:18] Yeah, and so what I like to do with any leg entanglement really is Your first thing should be like collecting the leg and then the second thing should Be controlling the leg so like everything from the hip all the way to the ankle if I can Control that and get you stuck Now it's my job to use finishing mechanics to get it so a lot of times again Maybe some people aren't as educated on the positioning of the leg locks and stuff, but like a lot of times we think about a heel hook so we go for the heel and then we just try to rip it as quick as we can. But if I can figure out a way to isolate your hip, your knee, and your ankle, get you stuck where you can't go right, you can go left, you cant pull out, and now I grab your heel, it should be a slow movement to finish, I shouldn't have to do these big twists and turns and big athletic movements. If I'm doing the technique right. And that's usually the problem, is that people are getting hurt because people aren't doing the techniques right. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:09:23] I agree. And I'm of the mentality that even white belts should be starting to learn these things. Obviously, if they're uncontrolled, then we need to have a sit down, right? But if you're not learning it early on, to your point, what were you like a purple belt? 

Jonavan Webb [00:09:35] The funniest thing, so the first one, I was a purple belt. I had a few stripes on my purple belt, I won a purple-belt division in the tournament I was in, and then they were like, hey, there's no black belts in this black belt division. Do you wanna go against this blackbelt? And the guy was like a second-degree black belt already. I was like, yeah, I'll go in there. And I go, and I remember, I looked at the score, and I'm like beating the guy, like using wrestling, and I was just scoring, passing his guard, taking his back, all these things. And then there was a few seconds left and he sat on a heel hook on me and just ripped it. I remember, I was young, younger, when I was probably, I think I was 19 years old. And I heard like a pop and I pulled my leg out and didn't think anything of it, but then he sat and went for the other leg. 

Speaker 4 [00:10:27] Oh my gosh. 

Jonavan Webb [00:10:28] And as soon as he grabbed it, I was just like, that's it. Like, I don't want to do that again. And then that's like when it started. And then I got kneebarred by Keenan Cornelius in the grappling industries. And then, that when I really just went full blown into trying to figure out defensively how to stop it. But as I was learning the defenses for it is when I like started saying like, oh wait, in this position I can try this, or I can do this to try to get it offensively. And that's really how I learned leg locks. I didn't learn it from someone coaching me on it. I just learned it from trying to stop the leg lock. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:11:07] And sadly, I think sometimes you need to get injured to learn, not that you need too, it's just that it was more beneficial in my case. When I tore my ACL, I thought I had a decent understanding of leg locks, I had not even touched the surface. And so ever since two years ago, literally I went full send on defense, different positions, mechanics of finishing, inside versus outside. And I teach Tuesday, Friday at my gym and we do leg locks now because otherwise my students aren't gonna know. I mean, a lot of competitions don't allow. Heel hooks, right? Especially the local ones where I am in Washington, here they might be a little bit more. 

Jonavan Webb [00:11:42] So like nagas and stuff, like you can do heel hooks and everything out of white belt, which in no... 

Dr. Jimenez [00:11:48] Oh my god. 

Jonavan Webb [00:11:49] So it's a little scary, but I start my students with leg locks right away now. And again, it's just crazy to say it because I just remember it being such like a no-go. Years ago, we had a Samba guy come into the gym and he was like grabbing legs. And I just remembered everyone in the gym yelling at him and like telling that that wasn't okay. And then now that's the game. But the scarier part with leg locks now is that it's not just grab and go. It's people are just like the leg lock aims its own martial art now, right? Like it's like changed the game so much just all the different entries and controls. Like it just, I'm fascinated by it. Like I like seeing it and I like using it. But then there's guys who are just a whole nother level. Even One of my black belts, Kevin Dantzler, the kid is like, he'll do stuff and call names of certain moves and I'm just looking at him like, what is that? 

Dr. Jimenez [00:12:58] It's a whole different game. It is. And ever since I started going more down the no-gi rabbit hole, the gi stuff is so different now. Remember, I think when we were younger and when I first started with you, you could just do both. And it felt like you could. 

Jonavan Webb [00:13:11] Yeah, it felt like you were pretty even at both. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:13:14] And I was like, okay, if I could do Nogi, it's just without grips. And now it's new. Because if you start doing stuff from Nogi it does not translate, you get smashed right 

Jonavan Webb [00:13:23] And it's just, people are becoming experts in it, and it's different. And people are learning no gi at a faster rate than gi now. So like, gi, you gotta think like, traditionally, you go to a gi school and it is slower, and you're starting from the knees, and then there's a lot of rules, and maybe you only do pass sweeps in it for like their, you know, first couple years or whatever. And these Nogi guys are just getting thrown into like, like, oh, you're a white belt, but we're just gonna throw you in this open division and you're gonna go against a really good guy. Yeah, so I mean, I know blue and purple belts. We have a blue belt at the gym now that I would put my money on to beat most brown and black belts that are under 135 pounds right now. And the kid is, he was an elite wrestler And he doesn't even try to wrestle. But he'll play on his back. He'll do all these things. And it's like, I'm the coach and I don't even understand how he learned so fast. Like it's just, I don't know what it is now. Maybe information's more accessible now. Like, you know, they go on YouTube, they go BJJ Fanatics. They can, you watch every instructional, whatever, or just you go on Flow Grapplin' or on UFC Fight Pass and there's hundreds and thousands of matches that you can just watch the techniques and you can just pick up on it. And I mean, again, this sport is going to be even scarier in five, ten years from now, but right now it's like, I love seeing what these kids are doing and, you know, I'm just excited to be a part of it. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:15:13] So you came from a wrestling background and you're talking about this student who or athlete who came from the wrestling background as well. Do you think that that is super helpful for the entire longevity? Do you feel it's more helpful when you start? 

Jonavan Webb [00:15:27] Yeah, I mean, so years ago, again, I think wrestlers were like so against doing grappling and now it's not like that. It's like, so their eyes are open to it. Like, hey, after wrestling, I should get into this or I should start getting into it early so that when I'm done my wrestling career, like I'm already, you know, like ready to learn some technique like we just had. This year's national champion at 125. He was in here this morning. He's in from out of town and he's just, he was rolling Jiu-Jitsu and, you know, it's really cool to see that level of guy coming in, but it's like. Wrestling I think is a really strong base. I don't think you need it like there's guys who are really good like Kevin who? Can get through? You know a lot of people in the in this sport without any wrestling and it works for them But yeah, I mean, it's really it's real cool to see people Transitioning into it and then using their wrestling but learning jiu-jitsu too like sometimes like even when I started like white belt, I've wrestled everyone. I didn't do jiu-jitsu. I won jiu jitsu matches, but not by using like jiu Jitsu techniques. And but there's some kids that can just come in and be humble enough to like start like they never grappled ever in their life. That's hard. It's very hard. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:17:00] Because your body takes over. 

Jonavan Webb [00:17:01] Like I said, this kid, Nick, that we have, I mean, I literally see him on his back most of the practice. He's just pulling, and the kid's a really good New Jersey wrestler. And, you know, New Jersey, this whole area, New jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, it's just some of the most elite wrestling there is. I just think, again, the next five, 10 years, the sport's gonna change even more when all the wrestlers are coming in. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:17:32] So let's go back to when you and I first met. That was like 2014 or probably like about 11 years. That's when I first started. You had been doing it for longer, obviously. You were a black belt by that time. And talk to me about how you decided you were gonna go from more being the athlete to a coach and then to a gym owner and how you did all of that. 

Jonavan Webb [00:17:50] So the funny thing is like, I started coaching very early, so my coach Brian McPherson, he was a major in the state police when I started doing jujitsu and he was like on this like government detail and he had this work phone that he would sit on the mat and he'll be teaching a class and all of a sudden that phone goes off and he would have to run out. And he would just be like, oh, and to go back, like I started at his gym the first week it was open. So my cousin is the one who got me into Jiu Jitsu. He asked me if I wanted to go to a grappling class and I didn't know what grappling was. I thought wrestling was grappling. It's another funny thing, but my screen name on AOL, on AIM, was... NJ Grappler, 89. While you were a wrestler? While I was a wrestler, I never did Jiu Jitsu ever in my life. So like, I just saw wrestling was grappling. So I packed my bag, I have head gear in there, I have my wrestling shoes on, and I show up to this gym and there's like a bunch of old guys in there wearing Gs. And I was like, what the hell are we, what are we doing here? And he's like, no, go wrestle them. And these guys are just submit me and beat me, and I just remember. Thinking like whatever these guys just did to me, I want to be able to do to someone else. And I just went full blown into Jiu-Jitsu after that day. And I was there every single day. And I wasn't one of the only guys that had wrestling. So I had like somewhat of a grappling compared to the other new guys. My coach, his friends would come from his school that he trained at. Ever Cardo, Amadeus, and- And so like those upper belts would come in and help me, but when they weren't there, I was like the next highest person. So when I was, I got my blue belt in six months and probably right at that time is when he would just be like, hey John, finish class for me. He'd have to go. You know, again, I'm 17, 16 or 17 years old and I'm teaching like 40 year old men how to do a move. And I was very... I was a very shy kid. I played sports my entire life, but like I was never like someone who would just talk. Like it would just, I was quiet. Unless you'd talk to me, then I would, you know, talk to you, but other than that, I was like, I just a really quiet kid. So now I got to stand up in front of a class and tell them, tell these guys what to do. And you know it was scary doing it, but I just started falling in love with it. Even when I was fighting, when I, you know, was fighting for cage fury when I fought in the UFC, like I always knew I wanted to own a gym, but I just never knew when it was gonna happen. I thought it would be later on. I thought my, I was gonna keep fighting. And then when we had our first, when we have our daughter, me and my wife had our daughter Audrina, I was going back and forth from New Mexico to here in New Jersey. And I was like, you know, I need a... Settle down home instead of like doing all this traveling and I not that I fell out of love with competing in the sport But it was like am I gonna choose choose my like family or am I going to choose? Being the athlete because some people can balance it I'm not I was like a psycho when I was fighting all in like I'm all in or nothing kind of guy so it's it's When when I wasn't nothing else in the world mattered it was how am I gonna train, how am gonna eat, how am going to rest, how I'm gonna recover. Like I would go get massages multiple times a week. I would get physical therapy. I would do all these things because that's all I cared about. I would not go to weddings. I would no go to birthday parties. I wouldn't do anything for anyone because I was just so locked in. And one day I just woke up and I was like, I think I should. Have a gym and be more settled and then I get a phone call that my employer from the UFC gym wanted to sell the gym. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:22:27] Because we were UFC originally. 

Jonavan Webb [00:22:28] We're a UFC gym and he calls me and he's like, do you have any interest in buying the gym? And I was like, man, like, I don't have money. Like, you know, I was fighting and I was doing okay, but you know I wasn't making money like that. I didn't have savings. Like I didn't have all these things. And one of my sponsors was like I'll pay for the whole thing. And then He's like, you know, we'll go in and we'll make it work. And you know that it like changed my life after that. So, you it was a lot of hard work. I had to do a lot to put it all together and then to keep it rolling and grow it and stuff. But I got really lucky with just the position I was in like, the guy wanted to get out because his daughter was a singer. She was in in middle school and she wanted to sing and we had to travel all over the country and he's like he wanted to be her manager and that was the only reason he got out of it and that's what that's what brought it got this you know and it's just it's still a while to look back and think that's how how it all started um but you know it led me here and now you know i coach you know women children men you know people who never compete a day in their life to people who compete at the highest level. And I get so much fulfillment out of it. And I thought I would never be able to fill the void of like standing at the tunnel, hearing the crowd and being the gladiator in there, right? In the arena. And now I get it like tenfold. Like I literally, I'm at fights every weekend. And when they win, it's like... It's the best feeling, like it feels like I won, you know, and you know when they lose, it hurts, and it hurts just like when I lost, you now, and you now it's just, I just love experiencing and seeing these like guys and girls just put everything out there, like so many people have probably been in their lives that told them, you no, your goals are just, they'll never happen, you you, you know, why don't you just get a steady job or do the more traditional thing and all that kind of stuff. And all of them were in the position I was in before where I was like, no, I don't want to do that. You know, I want to chance it and just try what I want to try and see if it works for me. And again, I'm proud of everybody that even has the guts to go out and put it all on the line. But I'm just fortunate to be a part of a team that we do very well. And I think it just comes from everyone coming in and trying to work towards similar goals and we try to push each other. And again, anytime you get a bunch of people, especially a bunch alphas, there's always gonna be some tension or problems or. Some people don't get along or whatever, but I feel like we do a good job on the team just like settin' everything aside and just when we show up here, we train the way that we need to train and then we go on about our day. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:26:02] I mean, you have some amazing coaches, too, around you. That's probably huge, because you can't do it all yourself. 

Jonavan Webb [00:26:07] No, I definitely can't. When I first started the gym it was like I wanted to be, I wanted my hands on everything and it's just something that's impossible to do. So now we've got a great coaching staff and when I can't make the certain things, they go, right? When I can make the in classes they're here and it's you know With the sport, it's a good thing that I get to travel all the time, but it's also, it hurts sometimes. I don't get to be here for certain practices or get to see certain things, and it's hard for me sometimes to understand that still, because I wish I just had, I could be in more places at once, but again, I got such a good team under me. I know that when I am unable to be somewhere, they're gonna have a really good person in my sub-op. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:27:02] Changing gears a little bit. This is a Dr. Jujitsu podcast, so we talk about injuries. And you've had a couple. If you don't mind, talk about a little of your injuries and how you got back and what you did. 

Jonavan Webb [00:27:14] Yeah, so I mean, my biggest injuries have always been my shoulders. I remember hurting it the first time in wrestling when I was in high school. And it was, when I first heard it, it was just like dislocations, right? It would happen all the time. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:27:31] You have been a lot over and over. Yeah. 

Jonavan Webb [00:27:32] Yeah, they would just happen and then I got to a point where I was just popping them in by myself like and I thought It was normal like I didn't I just I mean I was a kid, you know, and I saw oh this joint comes out and I just put it back in then it's gonna be fine once it's back in there and So I would do it when I started fighting I Remember it happening a couple times of practice and I'll pop back in it would hurt for a little bit and then it would kind of go back to normal. And the one day I show up to practice, we warm up, first round, first punch, I throw a jab and I didn't even hit the person yet and my shoulder pops out. And when I went to like put it back in, it was like a numb pain. Like it just felt different than it ever did before. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:28:24] Like down into your fingers. 

Jonavan Webb [00:28:25] Yeah, and I just remember one of the coaches was on the side and he's staring at me and I'm staring at him and he was like, you okay? And I was like yeah. And he's like, you don't look okay. And he said I just looked like, I just went pale and whatever. And so that happened on a Thursday at sparring, like a nine a.m. Sparring. I always remember what. Times. Which session? It was like a 9 a.m. Sparring session and I met with one of the doctors at Rothman that same same day they got me in and I had surgery on Monday. Oh wow. I don't know how that all worked out. What day was the injury? Thursday. Yeah. Good insurance. I was almost my parents' assurance back then. Yeah, good. But, yeah, I remember his name was Dr. Salvo. He used to work on a bunch of like Phillies and Sixers players and stuff. And he was like, you know, if you want to keep your career and keep doing what you're doing, he's like, you have to listen to me on the recovery. And I was like... I was, like, yeah yeah, all right. And he's like, no, I'm telling you, if I'm doing your surgery, like, I don't wanna waste your time. I don't wanna waste my time. Like, you're gonna do it right. And I did, I went through all, I went seven months, no training. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:29:59] What surgery did you have? 

Jonavan Webb [00:30:01] I had a labrum repair. OK. Oh, with the camera? Yeah, like orthoscopic. Yeah. And so he repaired it. I took off. I didn't train for seven months. And I've never done that in my entire life. I've wrestled since I was a kid. And I played, you know, when I was kid, I played football and baseball. I would play all the sports all year round. I would just play sports. So this was like the first time I ever took off, And mentally, it was one of the hardest things I ever did. And that's a big thing that I have with my students now is like, physically, I know you're gonna be okay. The doctors are good now, the procedures are good. I know that you're going to be okay in the long run, physically. I'm always more worried about the mental part because I've been there. 

Speaker 4 [00:30:53] 100%

Jonavan Webb [00:30:54] Like that depression is like insane. Just seeing all your friends and all your teammates being able to like do stuff and you're just sitting there. It's just hard like you're not jealous, but it's like 

Dr. Jimenez [00:31:09] You're sad. 

Jonavan Webb [00:31:09] Yeah, you're just sad and you just want to be a part of it. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:31:12] A couple of times, and now that I've gone through it with my patients, I appreciate the mental side so much more. Before I went through it, I was like, get over it. I didn't realize how strong it was because I had never gone through that. I had gone through periods where I was on a trauma rotation when I was here. I remember when I signed up here, I was, like, hey, I'm probably gonna be gone for a couple months. I can't really afford to pay the freeze fee, and you were like, come when you can. It's like, thank God, right? Because I would be three months on trauma not leaving the hospital, and that would be sad, but I was. I had so much going on in my life, it wasn't so much mental. I was just trying to survive in trauma and taking care of patients. And then I would come back and be like, great, let's go. When you're injured and you're sitting here watching people. 

Jonavan Webb [00:31:53] Yeah.

Dr. Jimenez [00:31:54] What do you think? Do you think it's better to come in when you're injured, or do you think it is better to stay away? 

Jonavan Webb [00:31:57] Yeah, so it kind of matters how your life is I feel like you know if you're busy Like you're saying then good be busy if you can get through it But like from for me it was I didn't have anything else. Yeah, the gym was my life. So like if If I don't train that means I'm just sitting at home doing nothing and I've I was never a video Gamer ever not no offense that anyone else because some I've never been a video game person and that's all I did when I was hurt and it like for the first couple months because I didn't want to be in the gym around everyone and then I then my coach kind of talked me into just like hey just come and watch like come you know see with the techniques and like all the stuff and I did and it just made it made it so much better and it was just a really hard hard thing to get through but once I got through it I literally... I got clearance on a day and two months later I fought. Oh wow. So our fight camps are eight weeks. But that's usually you're in shape already. Then you do a eight week camp for the fight and then go, but I was like, nope, I'm fighting in eight weeks and I got myself together and it was a hard weight cut because this is my first time ever being really injured. So my weight like. Skyrocket for the first time. And so I had to get the weight down, then I had get the cardio back because when I did the labrum tear, they didn't even want me running because of the... 

Dr. Jimenez [00:33:37] The jostling, yeah. Yeah. It hurts. 

Jonavan Webb [00:33:39] Yeah, go too quickly. So because that's in my mind when they first did it. I was like, all right Like I can't use my arm like this and grabbing because I'll be able to do everything else and they're like, nope 

Dr. Jimenez [00:33:50] Now it usually takes like six to eight weeks for people to run, depending on the severity. And you had a big labrum tear. I recently had a biceps procedure done and I was running it like three to four weeks. 

Speaker 4 [00:34:00] Oh, that's right, yeah. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:34:01] But not crazy, like 12 minute pace, walk, run, you know, it's hard. They had me. Stairmaster, bike. 

Jonavan Webb [00:34:08] On the little hand, that thing's hard, bike thing. That thing's hard. That's all that like stretches. And again, this is two thousand eleven. And they had me on like doing a little like on the door is like a little wheelie. Yeah. Pooley. And I'll do that. And you're like, what is it? Yeah. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:34:36] What next? 

Jonavan Webb [00:34:36] And I just wanted more and they were like, nope. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:34:39] And now we're lucky too, there's a lot more equipment and a lot more social media. I know it tends to be the devil sometimes, and I think there's a lot of benefit. Like we can have talks like this. 

Speaker 4 [00:34:49] Oh yeah. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:34:50] You can go online, you can go on ChachiBeauty and say, hey, I had this shoulder surgery, what's safe for me to do? And they'll give you a plan. They'll give like a day-to-day, hour-to hour plan, right? So, I mean, and now that I've gone through shoulder knee surgeries, I think shoulder's a lot easier to recover from. Granted, rotator cuff tears are a different beast. Those are typically in older patients and they're very hard to recover form. But I think younger patients with shoulder injuries are easier than knees, because you can still walk. You can still get on the StairMaster. You can get on, like, I was biking like a lunatic five days out on a stationary, but I was putting that resistance up because you're just here, right in a sling. Knees are really tough, especially right side. You can't drive for like six weeks, potentially. 

Jonavan Webb [00:35:30] Potentially you have to go left left foot. Well, I just tell my patients you can't drive 

Dr. Jimenez [00:35:37] Not only can you get it taken, you can hurt somebody. Because your reaction time's not there. So I usually wait to clear my patients if they have a brace on, if it's a bigger surgery. Little meniscus clean up, 20 minute procedure, probably in two to three weeks. But when you're having these bigger knee surgeries after my ACL, that was hard. It was my right knee. So I was paying my physical therapist's kids to drive me to jiu-jitsu. 

Jonavan Webb [00:35:59] Oh my god 

Dr. Jimenez [00:36:01] And I said, you drive me to the gym, I'll pay for your gym single-day fee to go lift. And I just crutch around lifting. And then I said take me to Jiu Jitsu after. And I'd pay the money to go drive me around like my taxi with my leg elevated in the back of the truck, and because of the love of it. And if I wasn't there, I felt like I was missing out on my community, missing out on learning, and I just wasn't fulfilled if I was just sitting at home at night. So I was still getting there. 

Jonavan Webb [00:36:26] I get it, that's a tough road, but we just had one of our guys, he's out right now, he didn't have the surgery yet, but I think he's getting it this week for a rotator cuff, and he's young, he's only 21, or yeah, 21. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:36:44] How do you do that? 

Jonavan Webb [00:36:45] He doesn't even know. Yeah, he was just wrestling and then it hurt. He had labrum issues before. He was like a high school football player. What's the, when you throw the ball? Shot put? Shot put. And so he had some injuries there like years ago and, but now he's gonna be out for a little bit. And again, just like we talked about, the day I found out that he was gonna be out, you know, he was a young kid and his dad was actually an NFL player and was a principal at a high school, not too far from here, but I was talking to him like, like Again, I know he's gonna be good physically, but just make sure you check on him mentally and also call me if anything. Because again, I was around his age when I did mine and again, that's, I think that's the scariest part of the whole thing. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:37:42] The community's tremendous, too, right? People are checking up on you. People are like, hey, what can I do? Do you wanna go out? Do you still wanna hang out? Do you want to work out? Because it's the community. And I think that helped me keep my head on straight, and you have to have goals. It's like, what is my goal this week? It's to walk. And it's different goals, but it's still goals. And that's the way you have to wrap your mind around that. And people that don't really struggle, because they're like, I was deadlifting 300 pounds last week, I'm like, guess what? Not this week. We have to different goals. Yeah, and it will come back It's just, if you don't follow the rules, we're gonna have problems. Yeah. Was this the same shoulder that we treated when I was a resident? When I was a resident? 

Jonavan Webb [00:38:21] Yeah, so I got that surgery in 2000. It was either 11 or 12. And then my shoulder was fine. Like after I did the rehab, my shoulder felt strong, never gave me issues. The only thing that would hurt is if I tried to do like a flat bench or something like that. I would just, I don't know if it was more of a mental thing than anything, but like, I was just scared of using it. And, but fighting wise, I was fine, And then... Right at the end of my fighting career, I had toured again, but it wasn't a complete tear of the sign. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:38:56] I think, didn't you have a slap tear? It was like, so the biceps comes into the labrum, which is like one of the most common things. That's what I had when I was younger, when I first started. 

Jonavan Webb [00:39:05] Yeah, so I had a fight lined up and they're trying to get me to pull out of the fight and I was like... 

Dr. Jimenez [00:39:14] Who tried to get you to pull out. 

Jonavan Webb [00:39:15] My coaches and everything. And I was like, nah, it's just the way I was. If I signed up for something, it was just, you know, if you gotta push me in a wheelchair out to the cage, I was gonna go out and give it my all. And you know that's not a good thing, but it was the way my brain was wired back then. And that's when you were in residence. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:39:43] I was in a residency, yeah, because I started here like my intern year. 

Jonavan Webb [00:39:47] Yeah, and then it was right around the corner. It was a street away. And I called you and I was like, is there anything that we can do? And I forget exactly what we did. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:39:59] Well, you got the MRI. 

Jonavan Webb [00:40:00] Yeah.

Dr. Jimenez [00:40:00] And I looked at that to make sure that wasn't another like complete labrum tear and we had risks of dislocation because you didn't dislocate yeah it was more just like a chronic thing at this point yeah and I was like okay it's safe till we can consider an injection yeah therapy and get you to your fight but that's not the same for everyone you were dislocating I would have been yeah and 

Jonavan Webb [00:40:18] Yeah, and I do remember you telling me that that quarter zones not for everyone and you don't want to repeat it Maybe I shouldn't I Should think about it and then I was like I want to do it so so You know again because it was either I was gonna Go out there with it hurting and Injured or I was going to go out there where it's not hurting and injuring, so it was, I guess it was like, you know, well. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:40:48] Or where it's not hurting and you did well. 

Jonavan Webb [00:40:50] Yeah, so, you know, it was just one of those decisions I made. And but, you know, honestly, since then, my shoulder hasn't given me any issues. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:41:02] Steroid injections have their role, and I think for people in sports, this is the perfect application of it. It was a couple weeks out. We could let it settle down. You could take a day or two off to let the cord do its thing and not flare on you. And I think that was perfect for that situation. But people are trying to get steroid injections when they have like an ACL tear or something is unstable. That's different. That's a mechanical problem, right? We were treating a symptomatic small tear that most of the time you don't get surgery for. And we needed to get you okay, and you did some therapy too, because it's not just steroid injection and move along. 

Jonavan Webb [00:41:38] Yeah, that's right. I think that's what helped is that like I started doing all the band work and all that kind of stuff 

Dr. Jimenez [00:41:44] And you had PT here, right? I had PT, yeah. 

Jonavan Webb [00:41:48] I used to sublet to a physical therapy company, so I would do the PT and all that. And I mean, it's, again, I'm a little. Oh yeah, is that for that? You just got the wood out there for knocking? Yeah, I always have that wood just in case. Cause I feel like anytime you talk about injuries, like, oh, I've never injured my knee before. And then it's like, bam, there goes your knee. Like that, it always happens that way, so. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:42:09] That's stuff too, right? You injure something and then afterwards you're like, well, I hope that never happens again. And guess what? With what we do. 

Jonavan Webb [00:42:15] It could. It easily could. Tomorrow. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:42:18] After my ACL, people were like, oh my God, I hope that never happens. And yeah, of course I hope that and if I just say it's not gonna happen, it could. And so I think that I have a healthy, sometimes a little too extra with injuries, but I've had enough where I'm like, I need to be careful if I wanna. 

Jonavan Webb [00:42:35] I think it comes with experience and with age too, because I feel like when you're young you just feel like Superman or Superwoman and it's, you know, you feel like nothing can keep you down like that and as you get older it's like, yeah, it is going to take a little time to recover or I got to watch what I'm doing. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:42:57] Yeah, also being the 

Jonavan Webb [00:42:59] Well, that too. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:43:00] Has really been a struggle when I was younger. I was like, oh, I can take anyone on, and I would. I would, but then at what cost? I'd be sore for a couple of days. I was also in my 20s, right? So I'll get over it, put some ice on it. Now I'm kind of paying, I was paying for those injuries, so I'm way more selective. I say no a lot more than I say yes to roll with people because being 125, the kids are this small. The only ones I can roll with safely are the kids. 

Jonavan Webb [00:43:26] The kids. So that's something that I changed in my gym as well is like before it was like everyone should be able to train with everyone we're all the same team whatever and it's just not the case so if you ever need to say no it's a no. I say no to people. Yeah, if you're too crazy I don't want to get hurt. Yeah and maybe I'm just saying no today because you know today I don't feel that great or I just don't to deal with. Whatever you got together, whatever you're bringing to the table here. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:43:58] The way I tell people things is I say, if I'm willing to roll with you and you're a big guy, that means you're good. You're a good training partner. 

Speaker 4 [00:44:03] Yeah.

Dr. Jimenez [00:44:04] And like my fiance is 205 pounds. And I roll with him all the time. Sometimes he throws me across the room because he gets frustrated with me. I'm like, baby, you can't do that. Don't be a bully. And so if I'm training with you, it's because I think you're safe and you're not gonna hurt me. 

Jonavan Webb [00:44:17] Yeah, I just, again, we try to bring down the risk of injury. And I still, I remember one time, one of my other MMA, old MMA coaches wanted me to do an extra round where I knew I was like done that day. And then- You're already coolin' down on the side. Like all the guys that I normally train with were done. And he's like, no, you're gonna do one more round. And then pointed at this guy. That one wasn't even on our team. He was like in from out of town. And from what I saw, he was like a little spazzy. And I was like, no. And he's like, yes. And then, of course I go in, I just take a knee right to the mouth, like while grappling. And then I was just, I got up and I was, I'm done. And then at that day- They thought it was just that. Oh, I know, it could have been a lot worse. So then I just was like... You know, ever since that day, I was a black belt. At the time, but in my classes, I just made it where it was, you know, you don't have to say yes to everyone. Because, again, sometimes you just sense things, too. Like, I can look at you and be like, you know what? Today's not the day. I just don't, I don't think it's gonna work out. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:45:33] So I've got a cool question for you, what is a lesson that you've learned on the mats that has helped you off of the mats? 

Jonavan Webb [00:45:39] On the mat. I mean, the main thing is being okay at failing at stuff, right? Like before it was, that looks a little scary, so let me just stay away from it. But what I found made great athletes, great athletes and I try to make it where it makes great people as well is being able to get through. Failure and use it to try to succeed. And again, in my basic classes, I tell them the same talk almost every day. And it's like, listen, embraces suck. It's gonna suck. Jiu-jitsu's hard. You're gonna get bumps and bruises and all these things. I was like, but the only difference between me and you is that I've had more chances to fail at it so far. And it made me who I am now. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:46:37] Learning from it. What do people do when they fail? Do they quit? Or do they go home? Be like, where do I get better? 

Jonavan Webb [00:46:43] Yeah, so and that's what it is. It's like you just got to give yourself those opportunities to fail and that is how you are going to succeed. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:46:49] You learn more from failing, right? You learn from failing. It's hard. 

Jonavan Webb [00:46:51] Concept to figure out in anything. But just can't be scared of it. Even, you know, I've run Fury Grappling and that started as a conversation at lunch with my two partners. And it was like, should we think about doing these events? And we're like, ah, and we held it off for a whole year. 

Speaker 5 [00:47:14] But it kept coming back. 

Jonavan Webb [00:47:15] And then it came back and then things happened and COVID happened and like all these different things. And then we're like, you know what, let's just take a chance. And then we took the chance we did. We put this show together. We didn't have a broadcasting deal. We didn't have anything. We don't have the mats for it. I took the mats up from my gym and just took them there and we did it. And a week before the event, like we, you know, started doing our posts and everything. FightPass hits us up, and they're like, we want you on the platform. Actually, I won't say what other company, but the other big one, they wanted in first, and we were like, no, we just wanna test it out and see how it goes, and we're like no, we'll hold off, and then we got a call from them, and they were like we want guys on, and then, we were all right, I guess we gotta send it. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:48:07] I'm glad you changed that one because I have that membership. Yeah. Watch it. 

Jonavan Webb [00:48:09] Watch it. Yeah, so we were like, you know, just crazy how it all just happened But it just just because we decided to take a chance that we could have failed that we couldn't lost money doing it we could 

Dr. Jimenez [00:48:20] And that's the worst that would happen, right? I mean, losing money sucks, and you tried it. It's like, check, I did it, I tried. 

Jonavan Webb [00:48:28] We would have kept trying until it worked. Now we're 13 shows in. That's wild. Yeah. That's wild. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:48:32] Yeah, those ones are so fun too. Oh yeah, it's awesome. We gotta get you on when you're all ready. When I'm done with all my stuff and my military. Yep. So one more kind of interesting question. What do you think makes people the most coachable aside from like skill, kind of putting skill aside? What, when do you see somebody that's like, yes, you are coachable? What's the characteristics? 

Jonavan Webb [00:48:52] I mean, Humble's the best one. So if you can just come in without that ego of wanting to win right away, that's my favorite kind of person. And it's who can put themselves in the most bad positions and be okay with it, and they're not panicking. Like they're just there like, all right, this was it. I tap and I reset and we go again. And again, that's like, it's my favorite thing. Not a comment. 

Speaker 5 [00:49:19] It's not a common characteristic for fighters. 

Jonavan Webb [00:49:22] No, no, yeah. So, honestly, I love getting people who never trained a day in their life. 

Speaker 5 [00:49:29] Who aren't fighters. 

Jonavan Webb [00:49:30] Who aren't fighters, and then sometimes. So, what I've found in here, and one of my favorite things, is like gives me a lot of fulfillment, is like, we get a lot people come in who don't, even though it's an MMA gym, like they don't expect to do fighting, right? They're coming to get in shape or do all these things, but I think they've realized that they're not made of glass, and that's like the most empowering thing ever, because a lot of times you just think. Oh, you get this touched or moved and you break. Yeah. Right. And then when you realize that that we're more resilient than than that, it's like it just gives you like a superpower, I feel like. And, you know, it I just love seeing it. And I've had I've had so many people who would just do our fitness classes. So, you they can't see the gym, but the gym is kind of separated into. The big mat space and then like a fitness side of it. And a lot of people come in just for the fitness side and I can see them looking over while these classes are going on. Like, man, what are these crazy people doing over there? And then they'll start inching their way over and asking questions and doing all that. And then all of a sudden they're in the class and they're trying it. And then years later, they're. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:50:51] That's what I did, because I was boxing first, and then I was doing Muay Thai, but it wasn't too much contact. We were doing like a cardio style. I was like, why are these people in these pajamas over here? What are they doing? I had done karate as a kid, but I was, like, they have karate uniforms on. That's not karate. 

Jonavan Webb [00:51:07] It's our first female black belts, our Yara and Nancy, they're sisters. And they, so years ago, they were just fitness members. And before I owned the gym, and they did boxing and kickboxing only, fitness classes. And then they started doing Jiu Jitsu. And then, they became our first, female black belt. Now we have. A good amount of them and they are truly, truly like them and Chrissy and Tara and then you, like are a very big part of why our women's program is the way it is now and it just makes it easier for those girls to come over because of that. Like before it was like they look over and there's a bunch of these big hairy sweaty men and you know, like I don't think I wanna go train with them but now I mean you'll come to a class and there is. 12 girls in a class. And they're teaching. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:52:06] Teaching. We're teaching and so it's incredible. 

Jonavan Webb [00:52:08] Yeah, and I mean, I love it. So, like it's, again, when I started training, I knew one girl that trained, that's it. And then now it's like, you go to any gym in America and, you know, there's so many girls there and it's just awesome. And then even with Fury, like I try to, we always have women's, we had women's main events. Our first event ever had a women's' main event. We're doing a tournament. It's our first like cash prize tournament that we're doing. It's a women's tournament like 

Dr. Jimenez [00:52:43] That's my one... 

Jonavan Webb [00:52:45] 125 yeah, so it's like and these girls are like good on this one and and it's uh, you know, I'm just Obviously, I am not a woman I can only do so much, like you girls are, again, you got to show the girls that they can do it too and just empower each other and all that kind of stuff. And I'm just happy to be any way that I can be a part of it. But you guys are really changing the sport. And it's, I've just, again I talk like I'm really old, but I'm not that old. I guess for fighting you're a little. I've been in it for a long time and I've seen. Where it was and where it is today, and I just know it's gonna continue to grow. And like we were talking about earlier with wrestling, is big and now women's wrestling is big. I wish they had it when I was younger. Oh yeah, and that was never a thing. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:53:39] Even a couple years ago, I would wrestle with a local high school in Georgia and the girls were competing with the men. They were like, yeah, we just compete with the guys because there's not enough women. 

Speaker 4 [00:53:47] Yeah, that's how it was. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:53:50] But even, this was four years ago. And now they've separated, but. 

Jonavan Webb [00:53:53] Yeah, and now, I mean, it's just going to keep growing the sport. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:53:57] Thank you because I've always had tremendous male role models and men that have embraced me coming in versus the opposite where women were like shunned or you hear bad stories about women being sometimes on the mats and I've never had that experience so without you guys like the men that are helping the women's jiu-jitsu wouldn't be where it is either. 

Jonavan Webb [00:54:17] Yeah, well, like I said, I'm happy we can do any kind of part, but again, you guys are just going to keep taking this thing off, I know. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:54:27] So where can people find you? Where's your gym if people want to come in and train? 

Jonavan Webb [00:54:32] Yeah, I mean, on social media, it's just at Jonovan Webb. And then my gym's in Washington Township, New Jersey, about 15 minutes from Philadelphia. So anytime anyone's in town, come on in. 

Dr. Jimenez [00:54:47] Awesome. Well, thanks again. It was awesome having you. 

Jonavan Webb [00:54:50] I don't know. Great to be on. Thank you.