Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Fitness Blogging: Time Well Spent

Why You Do Have Time for a Fitness Blog

When it comes to fitness blogging, I hear a lot of excuses from fitness pros about why they don't do it.

The primary reason?

"I'm too busy. I don't have time to blog."

I heard it back in September at the BCFIT '10 conference in my session on fitness marketing with social media.

I'll probably hear it again in November, when I present on fitness blogging at canfitpro's Vancouver conference.

It's just an excuse, though, and here's how I know: I have the same problem. I don't blog every week (or even every month sometimes--oops).

And why not? Uh, I don't have time? 

Meaning: When I'm not on deadline with an article or writing/editing project, I manage to find other things to do instead.  

Like Facebooking. Or chatting with a colleague on the phone. Or catching a movie (last night it was Canada's own FUBAR II). 

Isn't it the same excuse people use for not exercising?

No time. Meaning: They don't feel like using the spare time they do have for working out.    

As for blogging, here's why it makes sense to at least set up a blog so it's there when you can get to it.

Blogging and other online pursuits (Facebook!) are part of the new way to market fitness. The old way is setting up a brochure-style website then ignoring your online presence.

If you're a fitness pro, what do you tell clients about how to carve out time for exercise? Could any or all of those strategies work for your own blogging pursuits? Whether you blog or not, share your tips and ideas here! 

Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to get back to Facebook.

For more on jump-starting your fitness blog, come see me on Sunday, November 21, at canfitpro Vancouver, Session 3211 (10:30am-12:00pm), Blog Your Way to Fitness Business Success.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Too busy: Just an excuse for lazy people.

Amanda Vogel said...

Thanks for your comment! Seems like it's contradictory to be busy and lazy at the same time. "Too busy" to me feels like an excuse for "I'd rather be doing something else." More of a mindset thing.

Karen Dubs said...

Ouch! This hits home for me. I haven't blogged for months. I'm far from lazy - have been spending my spare time doing charity work. Writing is hard for me and I found people respond more to my Youtube segments more than my blog. Thanks Amanda - I love your Blog and appreciate the time you spend on it!

Nicole Palacios said...

I have a hard time fitting in my blogging, but it's a good way to keep up with my writing and research when I don't have a lot of articles on the go! Thanks, Nicole Palacios

Ryan Halvorson said...

I think, perhaps, being busy precludes laziness. Blogging is an "extra" thing to do. So, after I've worked all day, trained clients, taught classes, etc., I don't have energy for much more than curling up on the couch with a book.
This is where creating a schedule works well. I schedule my own workouts, which is why they get done. I schedule time for blogging, and it gets done.
Finally, I think a lot of people believe a post has to be some amazing revelatory piece. Not so.

Amanda Vogel said...

Thanks to everyone for your comments!

Ryan, you make an excellent point about people feeling as if they have to make the blog post something that's so amazing. I have sometimes spent more time on a post than I wanted to because I get caught up in the writing or the structure of it needing to be spectacular. And I know some bloggers do promote that idea. But then the next time I think I should get a post up, I procrastinate because of how long it took me last time!

Maybe it's my background with writing for magazines, where I really work to get the ideas and structure as solid as possible. Not that you should ignore all that in a blog, but writing web exclusives for magazine websites is teaching me that people are after good ideas and information online; it's less about clever wordsmithing--although that can help sometimes, too.

Susan said...

I agree, Amanda, I think "too busy" means "I'd just rather do something else with my time". Which is fair. Applies to a whole bunch of things that any of us claim to be too busy for. I, for example, am simply too busy to ever shovel snow.

p.s. FUBAR 2 - cool!

Andrea Johnston said...

When I client tells me they "didn't have time to exercise" I call 'bologna' ... it's not that they didn't have time; it means that exercising wasn't important to them. The same could be said for blogging; if people aren't blogging (myself included!) it's because it's just not important enough for them (me) to fit it into their schedule. It's not a time management issue, but rather an issue with priority and understanding the importance that blogging has on your business. Thanks Amanda, for helping me see the light.

Faith Dey said...

Well, Ryan and Amanda - thanks for helping me remember that I'm not the only one who needs to work on this. I love Ryan's idea of scheduling blog time, just like scheduling clients and classes. It needs to become routine for me.

Yep, I can Facebook all day long, but the thought of regular writing stops me because I think I need to be 'clever' all the time. I'll lighten up on that...
Thanks for the encouragement - I appreciate your sharing!