John Nies was a 6th round (154th overall) pick in the 1990 NFL Draft

1990 NFL Draft

The 1990 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 22–23, 1990...

 out of University of Arizona

University of Arizona

The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...

 to the Buffalo Bills

Buffalo Bills

The Buffalo Bills are a professional football team based in Buffalo, New York. They are currently members of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 where he played for one year as a punter. Along with his younger brother Eric Nies

Eric Nies

Eric Nies , is a former male fashion model and reality television personality. He first gained fame as a cast member on MTV's The Real World: New York, before going on to appear that show's spinoffs and other reality shows, such as The Grind and Confessions of a Teen Idol.-Family:Nies is the son of...

 (later of MTV

MTV

MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

's The Real World

The Real World

The Real World is a reality television program on MTV originally produced by Mary-Ellis Bunim and Jonathan Murray. First broadcast in 1992, the show, which was inspired by the 1973 PBS documentary series An American Family, is the longest-running program in MTV history and one of the...

fame), he posed nude

Nude photography

Nude photography is a style of art photography which depicts the nude human body as a study. Nude photography should be distinguished from glamour photography, which places more emphasis on the model and her/his sexuality, and treats the model as the primary subject. Nude photography should also be...

 in Bear Pond

Bear Pond

Bear Pond, published by Little, Brown and Company in 1990,, is an "infamous book" of nude photography by Bruce Weber and poetry by Reynolds Price. Among the models featured are Buffalo Bills punter John Nies and his younger brother Eric Nies who later gained fame as a cast member on MTV's The...

(Little, Brown and Company

Little, Brown and Company

Little, Brown and Company is a publishing house established by Charles Coffin Little and his partner, James Brown. Since 2006 it has been a constituent unit of Hachette Book Group USA.-19th century:...

, 1990), an "infamous book" of photography by Bruce Weber

Bruce Weber (photographer)

Bruce Weber is an American fashion photographer and occasional filmmaker. He is most widely known for his ad campaigns for Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Pirelli, Abercrombie & Fitch, Revlon, and Gianni Versace, as well as his work for Vogue, GQ, Vanity Fair, Elle, Life, Interview, and Rolling Stone...

. John Nies subsequently became a fashion model

Model (person)

A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....

, actor and host of numerous ESPN

ESPN

Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....

 programs.

In 2008, John created Chi-Force

Qi

In traditional Chinese culture, qì is an active principle forming part of any living thing. Qi is frequently translated as life energy, lifeforce, or energy flow. Qi is the central underlying principle in traditional Chinese medicine and martial arts...

, a program "created using seven disciplines to restore a more holistic life." It is described as a fusion of Eastern

Eastern philosophy

Eastern philosophy includes the various philosophies of Asia, including Chinese philosophy, Iranian philosophy, Japanese philosophy, Indian philosophy and Korean philosophy...

 health and wellness philosophies and more contemporary Western training techniques that serve as a model for living a fully integrated life mentally, physically and spiritually. John operates The Power Center in Red Bank, New Jersey

Red Bank, New Jersey

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 11,844 people, 5,201 households, and 2,501 families residing in the borough. The population density was 6,639.1 people per square mile . There were 5,450 housing units at an average density of 3,055.0 per square mile...

, as a retail venue for the Chi-Force program. At his health center and through speaking engagements John Nies focuses on prevention of illness, sport-specific training program for athletes, the cultivation of personal discipline, as well as helping clients overcome substance abuse

Substance abuse

A substance-related disorder is an umbrella term used to describe several different conditions associated with several different substances .A substance related disorder is a condition in which an individual uses or abuses a...

, food addictions, insomnia

Insomnia

Insomnia is most often defined by an individual's report of sleeping difficulties. While the term is sometimes used in sleep literature to describe a disorder demonstrated by polysomnographic evidence of disturbed sleep, insomnia is often defined as a positive response to either of two questions:...

, depression

Clinical depression

Major depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...

, fear and anxiety

Anxiety

Anxiety is a psychological and physiological state characterized by somatic, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral components. The root meaning of the word anxiety is 'to vex or trouble'; in either presence or absence of psychological stress, anxiety can create feelings of fear, worry, uneasiness,...

, low energy levels, and other related complaints related to physical and mental health

Mental health

Mental health describes either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and...

.

John Nies is a contributor to the newly published book by Marybeth Maida and Debbie Kiederer, "Beauty Pearls for Chemo Girls", as an expert on fitness and the power of using your mind and visualization as a tool for healing during chemotherapy for cancer patients. In addition, John is part of the Hollywood Heroes campaign as a spokesperson for Kids Kicking Cancer

Kids kicking cancer

Kids Kicking Cancer is an organization devoted to helping children overcome cancer. It was founded by Rabbi Elimelech Goldberg, a black belt in the martial arts and the former Rabbi of congregation Young Israel of Southfield. The goal of the organization is to teach children to cope with cancer...

. Kids Kicking Cancer is a non-profit organization

Non-profit organization

Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...

 dedicated to helping children with cancer

Cancer

Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

 through mind-body training in the martial arts

Martial arts

Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....

.

Family

John and Eric Nies are the sons of Jack Nies "one of the longest running referee

Referee

A referee is the person of authority, in a variety of sports, who is responsible for presiding over the game from a neutral point of view and making on the fly decisions that enforce the rules of the sport...

s in NBA history", and Anna May, a pre-school teacher. The boys' hometown is Ocean Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey

Ocean Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey

Ocean Township is a township located in east central Monmouth County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 27,291.Oakhurst and Wanamassa Ocean Township is a township located in east central Monmouth County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census,...

.