Beyond FitBloggin' (Or What I Learned This Weekend)

I wanted to write this post yesterday, but it took me most of the day Sunday to really digest what I learned while I was at FitBloggin' this weekend. Not to mention that I was mentally spent from all the social interaction and networking.

Over the next couple of weeks, I'll be posting about the great products I get to try thanks to the FitBloggin' Sponsors and vendors. I'll also write about some of the things I learned during the sessions I attended, including ways to monetize a blog (and why I might want to consider it); options for navigating the path from blog to book; and the importance of evaluating the science behind health and fitness research studies. But the reality is that I learned a lot more about ME than I did about blogging at FitBloggin'10.

I attend writing conferences pretty regularly, but I had never been to a blogging conference before (and now that I have I'm totally kicking myself in the butt for not registering for BlogHer). Being surrounded by so many health and fitness bloggers invigorated me in a way that other conferences never have. Not only do I feel inspired to keep working toward a healthier life, but I also feel inspired as a blogger and writer. Something about FitBloggin' has lit my blogging flame again.

I'd venture to say that the thing that has inspired me most is that I've rediscovered the passion that got me blogging in the first place. I love writing in general, but I particularly love writing about health, fitness and food. (That's how I started, after all.) In trying to follow the advice I read all over the place that blogs should be in a niche rather than general, I tried to separate my interests. Which meant creating multiple blogs and blogging for other people in order to keep my health-and-fitness side happy -- and creating multiple blog personalities in the process. I was taking it to the extreme, and frankly, I couldn't keep up with all the "niche-ing". I started getting frustrated with blogging in general and found myself struggling to keep up with posting on any of the blogs I'd created or started writing for. 

Because of that frustration, I've let some of my extracurricular blogging gigs go and I've been considering merging Writing: My Life with Write Out Loud for a while now. I think that FitBloggin' was the opportunity I needed to really evaluate what I want from blogging and where I want to take my blogs.

All of that being said, while I'll be shifting the focus of this blog a bit, I don't plan to limit myself to posts about how many calories I ate or what I weighed-in at. In fact, I don't really want to blog about those things at all (though I might, occasionally). What I will be writing about is my life and all that it entails: staying healthy while working full time and trying to build a freelance writing and editing business; being creative in the kitchen as well as in my writing; exploring yoga and its benefits; other things that inspire me (or bring me down); and whatever else I might feel passionate about.

I love the community I've built here and I appreciate all the support and encouragement you've given to me over the years (despite my multiple personalities and lack of focus at times). I hope you're open to tagging along during this transition in my blogging life. I'm excited to share this transformation with you!