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ABOUT MISSIONFIT

MissionFIT LLC. was established in 2017 in Baltimore, MD by husband and personal trainer Rick Plona.  Dr. Jess joined his team a couple years later as they continued to serve the surrounding communities as a trainer and physical therapist, as well as nutrition coaches.

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In April of 2022, Rick and Jess followed their hearts and moved to Apex, NC.  In July of 2022, Dr. Jess took a leap of faith to follow her dreams and started Mission FIT Rehab & Performance LLC. 

 

After moving to Sanford, NC in 2024, Rick and Jess decided to continue to expand MissionFIT and officially came together to open their storefront in historic downtown Sanford.  Rick and Jess are beyond grateful and excited for this next chapter, and look forward to serving the Apex, Sanford and surrounding communities for years to come. 

Our team

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Dr. Jessica Mertz PT, DPT, PN1

Jess is a licensed doctor in physical therapy, and a certified nutritionist.  She was born in upstate NY where she studied biology and was on the competitive dance team at the University of Albany.  Jess has a passion for fitness, and all forms of movement. During her PT career, she has really enjoyed working with runners, triathletes, OCR, dancers/gymnast, youth sports, and fitness professionals.  Jess has 12+ years of experience working in the orthopedic and sports medicine field, including start-up clinic management and leadership roles.

 

Jess believes you can be an athlete at any age, and she will inspire you to live your best life. She loves being able to contribute to making her community a healthier, and more active place. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, spending time with family, cooking, participating in races and training, and loving on her daughter and black lab Maximus.

Education:

  • Neumann University - Doctor of Physical Therapy

  • University of Albany - B.S. in Biology, Minor in Spanish

Certifications:

  • Functional Dry Needling (EIM/NAIOMT)

  • COMT training (IAMT)

  • Selective Functional Movement Assessment (SFMA)

  • Postural Restoration Institute (pelvis)

  • Blood Flow Restriction (Owen's Recovery)

  • Precision Nutrition Level 1 

  • NASM Mental Toughness

  • SoulBody Barre Instructor

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Coach Rick Plona, PT, Pn1

Rick Plona, native Baltimorean, is a personal trainer, and small group/semi-private group strength and conditioning coach. His personal background was that of a 3-sport athlete (football, wrestling, baseball) and he also had a 100-pound weight loss journey himself at the age of 25. His hobbies include spending time with his wife and dog out on the trails, running road races, and spartan obstacle course races. 

 

Rick has had an opportunity to work with everyone from beginners who have never stepped foot in a gym to seasoned division 1 athletes and everything in between. His expertise lies in building individualized programming for a variety of individuals. More importantly, Rick has found that helping clients determine their why is the taproot to achieving their goals. If you know why, it makes it much easier to figure out how! Real change does not happen overnight, and if it was easy everyone would be doing it. Let’s limit the excuses, increase our effort, and make a shift in our perspective that will allow us to focus on our progress! After all, this is your life, it is not a dress rehearsal. 

Education:

  • Arch Bishop Curley High School

Certifications:

  • NASM Certified Personal Trainer

  • KBCU - Leve 2 Kettlebell Coach

  • Precision Nutrition Level 1 Coach

  • NASM Mental Toughness

  • Weight Loss Specialist

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