On June 21, 2007, Sturgis was traded, along with forward Robbie Findley, to Real Salt Lake in exchange for veteran midfielder Chris Klein.

The next day Nathan was traded by Vancouver to Toronto FC in exchange for a first-round pick in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft.

[7] On December 22, 2012, Sturgis was once again on the move when he was traded to Colorado Rapids as part of a deal involving Omar Cummings and allocation money.

On July 17, 2008, he was named to the U.S. team that participated in the 2008 Beijing Olympics; however, he was ruled out shortly afterwards due to a hamstring injury.

[13] Sturgis' younger brother, Caleb, is a place kicker who is currently a free agent in the National Football League.