Did you know that I started Lindsay’s List on a whim one day when I was twiddling my thumbs?
It’s true. I do actually twiddle my thumbs – it’s a tick I have.
This genius blogging venture might never have happened had it not been for my desire to complicate and overschedule my life.
Let me take you back in my hot tub time machine.
{Guys. Pretend we’re in a time machine. I’m making a mechanical sound right now for full effect. I wish you could hear it. We’ve landed in July of 2011. What a spooky world.}
I had a one year old and a three year old, both of whom took daily TWO to THREE hour-long naps. I wasn’t working at the Fitness Center yet. I wasn’t performing in any shows at the theater. I wasn’t doing much of anything besides being a mom, which yes, is a job in and of itself. But I was on top of it.
And I was bored.
Somehow I found this blog, which led me to this blog, which led me to this blog. And many others followed.
It was after reading these blogs that I thought I might like to try my hand at writing. Healthy living writing, simply because that’s what I knew and the type of blogs that I enjoyed reading.
(Actually, the type of blogs I enjoy reading are WITTY blogs. Written by people that share my sense of humor. People who write as if they are actually having a conversation with you. People who overuse the words “awesome” and “gnarly” because they’re happy about life. People who know how to tell a good story. Hot tub time machine-kind of stories. I like those types of writers.)
Anyway, I started writing. And I’m sorry to say that some of my earlier work did not reflect who I was or what I enjoyed writing about (go back and see for yourself). I kind of ambled around for a bit until I slowly started to find my writing voice.
A common question is asked by companies who want to work with me and fellow bloggers who are trying to figure me out…..
“What kind of blog do you write?”
The answer: I really don’t know.
We often try to place people into genre’s. Just like movies.
Are you romantic comedy, horror, drama (yes), action, or adult (yes)?? For bloggers, it’s healthy living, fitness, fashion, lifestyle, mommy, or food. I’m sure I’m missing some but you get the point.
The fact is …I don’t really fall into any one of these categories. I’m a little bit of everything. I rarely post recipes, but I eat healthy foods. I work out daily, but I don’t always share what I do in the gym. I try not to bombard you with stories of my kids, but they inevitably come up. I am the “Egg Fu Young” of blogging – a little bit of everything, deep fried and covered in gravy.
I think my true voice comes out when I write about two things: GOD and BODY IMAGE. I don’t know why but I usually start the week off on Monday with one of those types of posts. (Do people read more on Mondays? I honestly don’t know. I should probably find out.)
They say, “write what you know.” At 30 years old, after YEARS of battling body image issues, with breasts that have been pulled and yanked on by two children (and hopefully more) and a full head of brown hair with some gray thrown in, I’m starting to figure out who I am.
I am:
- A daughter of Christ.
- A wife.
- A momma.
- A sister, daughter, friend.
- A lover of MOVEMENT.
- A personal trainer and group fitness instructor.
- An 80/20 eater.
- A flippin’ blast.
My blog doesn’t define me. I define it.
I choose the themes. I write the words. People either like it or they don’t. And the pieces that I feel best about writing are those that do two things: 1) INSPIRE and 2) MAKE YOU THINK. This blog is simply a reflection of WHO I AM.
What kind of blog do I write?
I write Lindsay’s List. And It’s all I know.
Welcome!
QUESTION: What kind of blog do YOU write? What genre would you put yourself into?
splendid…lindsay
Great question! I have only just started writing my blog and I can definitely relate to your feeling of struggling to find your voice. I think I’m slowly getting there and my posts are starting to reflect who I really am and it feels great!
I love reading your blog and many other amazing ones out there, I only hope one day I can be considered one of those special “witty blogs” you speak so highly of!!
I LOVE THIS POST!!!!
It totally sums up the exact same way I feel about my blog, too. If somebody asked me, I’d probably say that I belong to the healthy living blog community, but my blog is so much more than that. I talk about: the recipes I’ve made lately, weight loss, (sometimes) exercise, my boyfriend, my apartment, my disability, my education, my random thoughts about life, etc.
I don’t even want to be labeled as a healthy living blog, but sometimes I struggle with the idea that my blog doesn’t conform to some cookie-cutter identity. But ultimately I love the way that my blog is now, and it’s taken me two years to create a writing style and voice that I love and am truly comfortable with.
“My blog doesn’t define me. I define it.” <- LOVE this! And love YOU! I don't care what if any type/category/genre you fall into, you're like Apple Jacks…why do I love ya? I just DO! ;) xoxox
Sometimes I regret putting the name “healthy” in my blog title at all…because I used to feel like I shouldn’t write about some things or I should write a fitness post or foodie post every once in awhile…
Also I used to get super mad when I would post something and people would say, “What’s healthy about that??” Ugh! It’s my blog, I post what I want! Even if it is a decadent oreo-cream-cheese-ball with more chocolate and sprinkles on top!! ;)
And I was SO against being put into the “healthy living blog” category even when I was AT Blend and surrounded by health and fitness enthusiasts. I STILL feel like I don’t fit into that category because I don’t drink spinach shakes or do crossfit or (pick your healthy living blog trend).
But that’s okay right? We are all UNIQUELY made by God and it’s not our job to fit into a mold, we are simply to do our best to be the person we were created to be. Whatever that may be. ;)
So very happy to know you and your blog, friend! <3
Tricky question.
I think I started out with a weight loss and healthy living blog, and somewhere along the way it turned in to a rambling about injury and mental illness blog, but I guess now I would just call it a ‘download the stuff in my brain so I remember it later’ blog.
This is exactly why I read your blog. You are REAL!
Ps: My presentation all about you and your career as a momma and PT went very well. Thanks again for helping me out! :)
Thank you soooo much for adressing this because I’ve been questioning myself the same way lately..and to know that I’m not the only one who blogs about me, myself, and I is such a relief.
I’m so glad that you started writing a blog because I love visiting here. Your voice definitely does come out more strongly and passionately in posts about your faith and about body image but it’s also honest and real and vulnerable and I think that’s what drew me in at first and keeps me coming back – because you’re you and you’re real. I often feel like my blog is all over the place (it is) and I wonder if I should focus more on one thing or the other. But I don’t really want to.
I got this confusion when I had to verify what type of blog it was on my Blog’s facebook page- I ended up changing it a few times before giving up haha. I started blogging because it was an outlet for me as I dealt with my anxiety, ed, body image stuff etc. And because reading about others struggles and triumphs made me compelled to want to be able to have the same effect on them as it did me. Bloggers, blogs and my blog has done amazing things in my recovery and helping me move forward. I only wish I found you sooner!
I rarely comment, but I have to say I feel the exact same way about my blog. its all over the place. I feel like sometimes thats why I don’t have very many readers and haven’t made as many connections as some of the “bigger” blogs. But I consider your blog to be huge so maybe there is hope out there. I don’t want the numbers, I just want to connect. Thanks. ;-)
Well whatever category your blog falls into, I love it. I also am not SURE what category mind is in. Recipes? Family? Healthy Living (probably not)? Just a ME blog.
I always struggle when someone asks me this questions. Nowadays, it’s a pug-CrossFit-food blog.
Miss you!
Another thought-provoking post Lindsay! Great question! I think my blog (or me) has evolved since I began. I really didn’t know what I was getting into 2 years ago, but thankful I did because of the amazing reads out there. Because I dabble in a little bit of it all, I think athlete is the best descriptor of my blog since I’m not a pure runner, CrossFitter, personal trainer, chef. Great post!
I hate that question. I write a blog about whatever I happen to write about that day. That’s why I came up with the little catch-phrase categories so people could pick what they want to read if they come to my blog.
oh wow! Dang that’s a good question…and my answer is just simply not as awesome as yours lol…my blog is about balance…a little bit of everything I enjoy, struggle with, and hope to become. I love the Lord, but like everyone else, I struggle. In general I try to eat healthy, but also enjoy treats…I love fitness, but I also value sleeping in and a book. I love to write, and I find it easier to express myself on paper than in person. I enjoy fashion, but i’m also too poor for most of it. I enjoy trying to balance it all…and writing about it…when I feel like it, not on a specific schedule. That’s my blog. :)
Love this post! For the longest time I tried to fit my blog into one mold but then I woke up one day and realized that I should just blog about ALL the things that make me happy. I think that as our lives change, so do our blogs. Only seems fitting :)
That’s a toughie! Like you, I was inspired by numerous other blogs, and I think my blog kind of reflects that. But there are also basic writing instincts in me that seem to get mixed in there. For example, I think the first blog I ever followed was Julie’s at Peanut Butter Fingers, so my blog has a definite fitness/healthy living spin. But I also love to read and teach, so you’ll see a lot of book reviews and how to’s on my blog as well. :)
I guess I’m careful not to put it in a box though because I suspect that as I change and mature, so will my blog. So I like the flexibility of being able to make it what I want it to be.
Have a great weekend!
Great post! I am still finding my voice in the blogging world. Sometimes I have a great idea for a post and think, “I can’t write about that, it’s not about health and fitness!” And then I tell my self to shut up, I do what I want! :)
This is an awesome post! I’ve only been reading your blog for a short time, but I love your voice. It’s real and unique! My blog is just a baby but hope to achieve that type of writing style eventually. If I had to classify it, I would put it in the healthy living genre. What I really hope that comes through on my blog is my love for backpacking and my desire to inspire that love in others.
I blog to encourage. Maybe because I’m the type of person who NEEDS so much encouragement. I blog to be honest, after all we are all in this together and sharing failures and triumphs keeps us connected. I blog to share truth,because there are so many lies and misconceptions massquerading as reality.
I love your voice, the wit, and the story-telling. Those are the kind of blogs I enjoy as well, unfortunately I am not great with wit or stories, so it’s not my blog’s style. :)
I started as a training blog to track my running, but it has evolved into more of a general healthy living blog, and (hopefully) support/tips for other runners and moms. I’m still figuring out exactly what it will be!
That’s how I started my blog too, just last month! Im pretty excited about it. But one blog would just lead to another and I was like I can do this!! I hope you will check mine out! Mine is about me and my journey through fitness and health while still eating treats in moderation, and my dogs!!
My blog has got to be about 50% about my dogs!!!! Haha. I really enjoy reading your blog and some of the deeper topics you share about. :)
My blog is about ME! It may often have to do with healthy living (fitness & food) but it also has to do with my LIFE and my JOURNEY!
Love it, as usual. You are such a natural. I love how you always stay true to who you are. <3
I LOVE ‘how you blog’ — it’s what drives me to come back time and time again. Your voice is gorgeous — and like you said, it’s at it’s most pure when talking about your relationship with God and your relationship with your own body. I adore that about you and find you so inspiring and awesome. As for what kind of blogger I am? It’s evolved a LOT lately. I really don’t post my workouts but I post about how a workout made me feel or what a workout taught me, and if I talk about food, it’s about my relationship with food and how it’s evolved along with the occasional food related ‘recipe’ if you will. But really, I just write about what I love, what inspires me, what drives me. And it’s usually always tinted with a bit of faith because that’s what drives me deep down: my faith and a true love of life and all it has to offer.
I love this post and wrote a similar one recently because people are always asking…I always say “I talk a lot about food. And stupid stuff I do” ha! Guess that sums it up. I think of your blog as fitness…and awesomeness, but mostly as just “one of my faves”. :)
I think mine is still very food and fitness, with the occasional randomness thrown in when I wasn’t to. I love your personal style – keep doing what you do! :)
I used to describe it as “my life in food,” because I was a food blogger. While I worked out, I didn’t really feel like I was a ‘healthy living blog’ per se. But now, as my life has led me to take on a more holistic interest in health, fitness, and wellness, I think my blog might have changed a bit. Yet, The Smart Kitchen does still seem to sum up what I write most about: living smart, eating well.
But in the end, as I like to say: It’s my blog. I do what I want.
Great post and great answer! I always have a hard time answering that myself…
What a great post! I don’t like to categorize myself either because I feel like I am constantly changing and getting new inspiration for things to write about.
I have no trouble categorizing myself – I am definitely a food blogger. But do I wish I was more? Yes! I wish I was witty and funny and that the writing part came as naturally as the recipe development part. And I sometimes wish I went out of my way more to talk about health, fitness and other things that interest me, but I also think there is something to be said about sticking to a genre that my readers have come to know! So at the end of the day I stick with it.
love your blog!! i usually say i’m a “healthy living blogger” but then i’ll write posts that have nothing to do with being healthy, just being me :) :) and you know what? that’s good enough!! :) :) happy friday!
My best friend’s boyfriend picked me up at the airport last night (at midnight, God bless him) and asked me about my blog. I didn’t even know how to describe it! I think it ended with “it’s just me?” Haha. And if it helps, I just organized my google reader into sections, and yours is in the “For The Soul” section.
I’m so glad i found you. And i like how lindsay’s list has evolved. Such a JOY! And REALNESS! I would say that i am a random blogger. Mainly blogging about where God has us, why, and throw in some gluten free recipes.
I guess my blog is mostly an example of life casting. Yes, I write about food and running a lot (although I’ve been totally slacking with the running and that needs to change.) but I write about it in terms of how it fits into my life. Basically, I just like to talk about myself. :)
I know what kind of blog you write… an AWESEOME blog. ;) Happy Friday!!
Great question. Because you sorta stumped me! Originally, I thought I would be writing a “healthy living” blog, but to me, it goes way beyond that. That title doesn’t really describe my blog, imo. But I’m not sure how I’d define it, and true to what you said, I think that I define it as I go along. To what suits me, because it is a reflection of me and my thoughts.