Hey, I’m Steve, and I’m a nerd.
When I started Nerd Fitness five years ago, I wanted to help people who identified themselves as Nerds: people who followed hobbies and pursuits outside of the mainstream.
I wanted Nerd Fitness and the Rebellion to be like Charles Xavier’s “School for the Gifted,” except instead of everybody having mutant powers, we’d all have unique nerdy and fitness “powers.” We’d get to discuss incredibly nerdy subjects while also learning about healthy eating, proper lifting techniques, and leveling up our lives.
Honestly, this place has already become something bigger and better than I ever could have imagined, and we’re just getting started.
Today, whether or not you identify yourself as a Nerd, I want to tell you my thoughts on why being a Nerd is awesome.
I also want to invite you to tell us why you’re a Nerd, and be recognized for it.
What makes a Nerd a Nerd?
Do you have to like Dungeons and Dragons to be a Nerd?
How about Star Trek or Star Wars?
Computers and video games?
In my humble opinion, Nerds are Nerds because they take their knowledge about a subject, “nerdy” or not, beyond the surface and dig into the layers beneath:
- Where normal people watch Game of Thrones on HBO, Nerds have read all of the books twice, spend hours debating the future of Westeros on message boards, and and have taught themselves High Valyrian.
- Where normal people might have loathed chemistry or physics class, Nerds fell in love with the endless possibilities of mixtures and experiments that could result from a day’s class.
- Where normal people devote a few minutes a day to Angry Birds on their iPhones at the bus stop, Nerds devote hours upon hours to getting 100% on Dark Souls or maxing out their character in World of Warcraft.
- Where normal people might spend their evenings watching the latest reality TV show, Nerds might spend their time creating and crafting an epic story for their next table-top adventure.
Now, going beyond the norm and fully immersing yourself in an interest or hobby is awesome, but oftentimes get Nerds ridiculed for being different: for not going with the flow or being part of the crowd.
Sure, our parents always asked us: “If everybody jumped off a bridge, would you do the same?” to encourage us to think for ourselves, but society really expected us to be like everybody else.
In grade school and in high school, being uber passionate about stuff (anything really), oftentimes resulted in bullying, weird looks, and a seat at the ‘not cool’ kids table. If we had nerdy passions, they would only be shared with our other nerdy friends, behind closed doors, and at night while everybody else was out.
Fortunately, thanks to the power of the internet, we’ve come to learn that we’re not alone in these passions.
And more importantly, we’ve come to learn that being a Nerd is freaking awesome.
Why being a Nerd is freaking awesome
Two weeks ago, I stumbled across a video from a ‘nerdy’ conference where actor/nerd hero Wil Wheaton was speaking.
A woman who plans on raising a nerdy daughter asked Wil to give her young child words of encouragement down the road. Wil did not disappoint. I found myself with a huge grin on my face as I watched Wil explain so succinctly what being a Nerd truly means, and why we need more Nerds in this world.
WARNING: This might make you tear up a bit (it’s pretty misty over here at NF HQ right now):
“Why being a Nerd is Awesome video”
In Wil’s words:
Being a Nerd is taking the time to really understand what goes on in the world instead of just riding the planet through space. When I was a little boy, people really teased us about that and made us feel like there was something wrong with us for loving [science, board games, books, etc.].
I think a lot of us have realized that being a nerd or a geek…is not about what you love, but how you love it. So there’s going to be a thing in your life: sports, science, reading, fashion design, building things, telling stories, or taking pictures; the way you love that thing, and the way that you find other people that love that thing in the same way you do…that’s what makes being a nerd awesome.
Don’t ever let anybody tell you that the thing that you love is something that you’re not allowed to love.
Being a Nerd means finding something you love and not being afraid to dig in 100%. It’s about feeling connected, finding something that makes us feel alive, that makes life worth living, and then having the confidence to pursue it.
Thanks Wil, the world needs more people like you.
This is why the aspect of Nerd Fitness that I’m most proud of is the Nerd Fitness Community.
I love seeing people with different nerdy passions (Firefly, Cosplay, Star Trek) and different fitness interests (power lifting, running, parkour, yoga) getting to be 100% themselves.
Nerd out about our favorite passions and things we love while ALSO learning to be healthier? Hell yes!
What kind of Nerd are you?
I love getting emails from people saying: “I’m not a Nerd, but I enjoy your site…Though, I do love [something uber nerdy].”
Guess what, you’re a Nerd!
Embrace it.
As my friend Mars says, “The world needs you.”
This would suck without passionate people.
I don’t care if you nerd out about: sports, sports statistics,Dungeons and Dragons, sewing, knitting, Parkour, video games, science, rock/stamp/fossil collecting, table top games, reading, writing, photography, science fiction, gardening, rock climbing, yoga, LEGOs, MineCraft, cosplay, anime, travel, videography, art, drawing, music, performance, theater, archaeology, philosophy, movies, shows, ancient history, Greek and Roman mythology, whatever!
Regardless of how nerdy your interests are, you’ll have a home here on Nerd Fitness.
I’ll start us off:
I’m Steve, and I’m a Nerd.
I am a bookworm; I’ve read the Lord of the Rings series multiple times. I’ve read the Hobbit a half-dozen times. I read The Silmarillion so I could understand more of Middle-earth and its rich history. I love the A Song of Ice and Fire series. I think In the Name of the Wind was phenomenal, and I read Ready Player One in a single sitting. I’ve read the Harry Potter series probably three or four times, and I honestly can’t wait to check out the Wizarding World of Harry Potter the next time I’m in Florida.
I love ancient history, mythology, archaeology, and old churches. I love a good conspiracy theory. This is probably why Pillars of the Earth is one of my favorite books and Assassin’s Creed II is one of my favorite games: they mix all of these things together so perfectly.
I love gaming. I can beat Metroid Prime on GameCube in under three hours, thanks to devoting hours upon hours to watching speed runs on YouTube. I recently spent a good 40 hours tracking down platinum trophies for God of War I and God of War II, and I’m working on the same for God of War III.
I’ve dumped probably 100 days (not hours, DAYS) worth of time into EverQuest and EverQuest II, which is why I’m so excited about building a real life MMO: Rising Heroes.
True story: Five years ago, while on a particularly epic raid in EverQuest II, the components in my computer, which I built myself from scratch, fried from overclocking and I didn’t have the money to fix it.
So, I finally started dumping some serious hours into this crazy idea I had for a website helping Nerds get healthy.
I think things worked out 🙂
What does being a nerd mean to you? What are you passionate about?
Leave a comment and be recognized.
We’re glad you’re here.
-Steve
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photos: danbo glasses, mario and luigi, Wil Wheaton, Dungeons and Dragons
My name is Angela & I am a nerd! I am a Classic Film nerd, particularly films form the Golden Age of Hollywood. Essentially…I have rarely (if ever) met a black and white film that I didn’t like. From Casablanca and the others that everyone has seen to the Flash Gordon serials with Buster Crabbe, I have seen & loved thousands of them. My major celebrity crushes are on Rudolph Valentino, Charles Chaplin, Tyrone Power, and Errol Flynn. I also have a minor obsession with animated feature films & shorts. I have read tons of books about the lives of actors, directors, producers, and movie moguls from the period.
I have also become a nutrition and exercise nerd ofver the past few years. I have read tons of books and magazines on the topics. It’s exciting to me because it is rather like a science experiment. I am the amateur scientist and my own guinea pig. I read the science that goes into improving health. I put it into practice and I FEEL the effects! It’s marvellous. I know how it feels to quit smoking, to lose 60 lbs, to gain muscle/balance/skills, etc. I love it. Long live science!
I love the outdoors. I could go backpacking for months. I also draw a lot. I love art. Most of All I like reading Steve’s nerdy articles about awesome superheroes and enriching my life through knowledge. Great post.
That is awesome girl!
That’s one way to do it. Get paid for Geeking out I like it.
I have orchids in my garden, any tips?
I am a nerd of reading, writing, running, and anything that challenges you both mind and body! I love this blog site thanks for the experience
News. Comedy. Theology.
Do I win the weirdest combination award?
YES! Me too to all of the above.
Minus the liking Doctor Who. (
I tried really hard multiple times, but I just can’t do it.)
I have “Fuck Bitches, Get Money” tattoo written in Circular Galifreyan and getting a tri-force tattoo soon here. Sooo yeah, big nerd.
I have a Dalek tattoo. It’s purple, and has a heart thought bubble.
Whovians Unite! xD
I like this guy.
I’m a nerd in many different categories: theater, books, music, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Nerdfighteria. I am massively obsessed with everything to do with Broadway and theater in general; while my acting is kind of suckish at the moment I am doing everything in my power to become better. In the meantime, I’m brushing up on useless facts about theater history and previous shows, (from Lady, Be Good (no one knows what that is….) to Matilda) and reading all of Shakespeare’s plays and also I have been collecting sheet music from all different kinds od shows. I debate over the results over the Tony Awards with my other theater geek friends (all two of them) loudly during study hall and no one even knows who I’m talking about half the time. Every time theater is featured in popular culture, I let out huge screams of happiness. I also love books: Harry Potter, classics like A Tale Of Two Cities, Little Women, The War of the Worlds, etc., The Hunger Games, Divergent, all of John Green, Maureen Johnson, Lois Lowry, Neil Gaiman, and E. Lockhart’s books, and I’m planning on reading The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit over the summer, most definitely. Sometimes I think that I’m a bad nerd for not having read those books. I have grown to also have a passion for writing as a result of all of the books I read. Last summer I read about 88/89 books? I read all genres, but recently I’ve grown to love sci-fi books. Whenever a person is reading a book in class that I love (i.e. The Fault In Our Stars by John Green), I get all hyperventilated and freak out. Music is another passion of mine, I play the piano and violin and sing. Alternative, classical, and music with acoustic sounds are my favorite kinds of music; I also like rock to a certain extent. For example, Imagine Dragons for alternative, basically everything I have ever learned on the violin for classical, and Parachute, Vanessa Carlton, fun., Matchbox Twenty, and The Beatles are some other favorites. AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER IS THE BEST ANIMATED TV SHOW EVER…scratch that, the best TV show ever! I’ve loved it since I was in 2nd grade and I still maintain that love. I really connect with all of the characters to some extent, and I pretend that I can bend almost all the time. Finally, I am a Nerdfighter. A recent one, but still a Nerdfighter! I have an addiction to all the Vlogbrothers videos and I’m discovering all there is to know about Nerdfighteria.
So yeah! I am a nerd. I am a nerd and proud. 🙂
Love, love, love this article as do I all other articles I’ve read on here. I can’t place my finger on a particular reason I’m a nerd but have been told many time that I am. I completely embrace it and am pretty proud of it. This article makes complete sense to me and I totally agree. It makes me all the more proud to be a nerd! Thank you!
I’m such a nerd that I exercise to Doctor Who soundtracks. They make me run faster:D
Avatar: The Last Airbender, Shark Tank, Physics, Vlogbrothers/NerdFighteria, Doctor Who, Music, Books, The Brothers Grimm, and I KNOW I am forgetting things.
That’s why I am currently finishing up my last bit of school to be a medical lab scientist (and with my biology background too, I go a bit overboard in microbiology )
I love reading. I read Harry Potter for the first time when I was & and I’ve read the whole series at least 3 times possibly 4 I lost count. I’m obsessed with Pi and I’ve memorized over thirty decimal points I want to work my way up to 42. I read the book Ella Enchanted more times than I can remember. And Sci-fi, oh goodness do I love sci-fi. Stargate sg-1 is one of my favorite shows of ALL TIME I nearly went on a hunger strike when they took it off of netflix. My favorite Star Trek Captain is Janeway, but Picard will always have a special place in my heart. I wish I could love Kirk but I’m also a theatre nerd and I can’t stand the way he talks. Math and I have a love/hate relationship that I can’t seem to leave I’m getting into crochet and I have dreams of someday being able to sew all the things I dream of.
I’m a BAND GEEK. I geocache, and I love movies….300, Star Wars, Star Trek, The Matrix, Blade Runner, Braveheart…the filmography goes on. I’m not great at computers & tech stuff, but I do a LOT of email, both for work and online Scrabble, fb,…..and I am the Queen of Everything.
I am a Nerd and I am proud to be one haha. I love science so much I have decided to make a career out of it. I am majoring in Biology at my college so that I can be a field research biologist. I watched Star Trek every chance I got throughout my childhood. I easily confuse people with scientific explanations to things they ask me about, or just throw out the explanation because its my comfort zone. I am a major bookworm, I have an entire bookshelf with each shelf double parked with books, and I have read every single one of them, and that doesn’t include books I have read from the library or borrowed from friends or have on my Kindle. I play WOW with my bf, who is also a wonderful Nerd. I also love superheroes.
Ella Enchanted is my favorite book!
I have always been called a nerd. Well I prefer the term intellectual badass. I am a huge Potterhead, all my friends go to me with questions and jokes about it. I’ve probably read the series 20 times or more. Not that it’s the only series i read. I am also a major band geek. I was section leader, state contest alto sax soloist, jazz band leader, and drum major. Now I’m in a Big Ten marching band as a tenor sax at the U of MN. I also compose and transpose my own music. And I love Drum Corp International. I love singing. I am a musicholic, especially with classic rock. I was always in the honor roll in high school. I like my sciences much more than the arts. I love medicine, and my major is pre-nursing. I hope to become a nurse anesthetist. My passion is alpine skiing. I’ve been doing it for 14 years. I grew up with the game curling, too. I like to golf, I love football, baseball and hockey, too. I love going to watch my favorite teams. I am also outdoorsy when I’m not stuck in town, but at my cabin. My genealogy is also very important to me. I’ve traveled to 18 countries by the time I was 17. I am technological. I am also good with mechanics. I love the Big Bang Theory, and I follow along with what they’re talking about most if the time. I am introverted. My morals are very strong and important. Most importantly, I am all about Jesus.
I love Harry potter and it is my goal to memorize the series, and anime/manga and reading are things that I as well. To me being a nerd means that you are different.
im a history nerd.i love it so much, ive seen all of the jane austen movies from the 1940spride and prejudice to the 2008 emma, im the only one at my school whos really like that but i enjoy it and fridays are the best because thats when i go to the sca (society of creative anachronisms) and i get to hang around with people who read jane austen and have read through shakespear multiple times and we get to dance together and i actually to heavy combat and archery and its absoloutely fascinating. then people first saw me with ‘the complete works of shakespeare’ under my arm, they looked at me weirdly but ive made them accept that im a nerd and this what im so passionate about and i wouldnt want to be anyone else because if you’re a model or someone whos under pressure from the things they say on tv then youre having to live up to societys expectations but if society already doesnt understand you then to hell with it, you just go and confuse them more because passion and not caring what they think is who i am.
Such a great post. Absolutely right about going 100% into things.
I’ve got a range of things: music, films (including Star Wars), Android phones, guitars, health…
…but this post has really made me think about myself. I think all this means that I’m really someone who’s into life-hacking.
Enjoy!
I’m a Youtube nerd, if there is such a thing? I spend definitely more than 2 hours a day on my laptop watching Youtube, especially gaming channels…even though I don’t have an Xbox…or PS3….or even a New Nintendo. I can still dream…….and spend time fanerding over Dr Who or BBC Sherlock 🙂
Normal people just spend 30 minutes on the elliptical, do a few sets of curls, go to zumba sessions, eat a few “healthy” things and call it a day.
Nerds spend years learning how to do a perfect bench press, squat, deadlift and OHP, spend years maxing out their lifting stats, learn which are the most nutritious foods, do a ketogenic cut, and carefully plan their workouts and keep close tabs on their stats.
I play Touhou Project, my waifu and favorite 2hu is Fujiwara no Mokou.
Being Touhou the ultimate nerdahol ever created by man, I think that says everything.
DOCTOR WHO
This was so inspiring to me… and it was a great post.
I am one in the art Of gaming,Writing and Intelect. I spend Hours on my computer playing DC Universe Online, World of Warcraft, Minecraft, DND Online ( And i have the board game to!), And pretty Much every PC RPG you can think of.
The name of the wind and its sequel the wise mans fear are amazing books. I really love anything to do with science, especially astronomy. I think my most cherished TV show must be Buffy although I have been obsessively watching startrek voyager recently. My most nerdy confessions would be that I really want a framed map of middle earth. I want a Voldemort wand. It is my ambition to have an observatory in my future house and I spend allot of time on YouTube. My favorite subscriptions are sci show, vlog brothers and Ashens.
best site ever
Sir I might add, there is no 100% in dark souls… unless you refer to 100% of all the items… or optional bosses + items + all soul-forged weapons + special crow-only items + the shortcut + all the soul-forged equipment + oolacile + max character. But besides that, I liked the article.
good job at misusing the word “nerd”
I’m very much a nerd. Doctor Who, watched all of new who and working my way through the classic series, I have a 250+ list of books I need to own that I’ve read and love, I play all string orchestra instruments except for bass, and I have a memory like a steel trap for anything that interests me (like the cultural significance of popular board games in different decades). I also enjoy playing Pathfinder, a more open-ended form of D&D.
i freaking love you guys
This is absolutely phenomenal. What Wil said did actually make me a little teary eyed. Let’s see… I’m an in-the-closet nerd. It’s because today’s society has got me into thinking it’s uncool to like all of these things, and that I’ll be ridiculed if I come out and say I’m the biggest fan of Star Wars and Star Trek you’ll ever meet. That I spend hours at a time maxing my characters on SWTOR and WoW, and that I’ve devoted my life to writing, even joining numerous roleplaying sites to help better my vocabulary and the movement of my sentences. In my spare time I read new books or books I’ve already read such as the Harry Potter series which I’ve read several times and typed each book(yes typed) into my computer. The LoTR series are another thing I fell in love with as well as A Game of Thrones(AFTER I began to watch the show). Something I’ll always, always love are superheroes. I was a huge Spiderman nerd at a younger age and when my dad took me to see the movies in theaters I cried like a baby at the prospect of getting to see Spidey on screen.
I am a language nerd! I’m the sneakiest (or creepiest?) eaves-dropper when there’s someone speaking some random language near me.
I learned Spanish to Fluency and have learned a moderate amount of like 12 other languages! I’m currently starting an intense Esperanto-learning spree as apart of an Esperanto competition!
Also I started watching Star Trek recently and am addicted. ADDICTED! It’s their sense of adventure that gets me. Other nerdy bits: rock-climbing, short hikes, moving my furniture around at least once a month, refining the “eggs, bacon and toast” breakfast every single morning and I have a hobby (which I constantly refine) where I always write a personal letter to people who I think did a really good thing and who I saw in the media. (For example, I just wrote Ben Stiller thanking him for The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.)
I’m Aaron or as I go by online, Novaa. Anything related to science or technology is where I thrive. I LOVE programming and web design and often ask teachers for alternate projects so I can utilize these skills. Being a straight A student in some classes 3 years ahead of my age group, I manage to have enough free time to constantly learn new skills like photo and video editing, music production, and taking in all the little trivial facts about my favorite shows like Firefly and Doctor Who. Sadly, the people in my school exclude me for being different and for bringing my Sonic Screwdriver everywhere I go, but thanks to the internet I really feel welcome and able to express myself for what I enjoy.
Like most people on this site, I too am a nerd. I love Star Wars and have watched the movies more times than I can count. I have also read many of the books, though not all of them. I like The Lord Of The Rings and Star Trek as well.
I’m a gamer. I have sunk over 400 hours of play time on a single toon in World Of Warcarft. (Rouges ftw!) I love gears of war, army of two, mass effect, uncharted, battlefield, skyrim, and a load of other games.
I even collect comic books. Iron man is my favorite super hero but I own more batman and walking dead comics than iron man ones.
As for fittness I love jogging. The feeling and rush I get after a nice jog is the best. I love kickboxing and mma as well. I have been training in mma on and off for a few years.
I love computers, photography, the science of the human body, fantasy and science fiction books, art, music, fitness, Harry Potter, knowledge, math, chess, robots, etc.
I am a nerd of creativity and technology. I love creating things, especially on the computer. Coding, modelling, photoshop, anything like that.
Sonic, Portal, Biochemistry B) -and a lot of other stuff-
DOCTOR WHO.
The catch is, no matter what position you gain on your webpage or article, if no one understands it, or if everyone stops reading half way through, everybody loses. So, you try to force feed your redundancy in order to gain position without losing your reader entirely in the process. Think “Family Feud” where the competing family is named Dawson. important source
Yes!!! YES!!! Finally someone like me!!!