I have been blogging almost 3 months, now, so I figured it would be a good time to perform a little evaluation. From what I've seen in the blogging world, there are certain characteristics that promote a successful blog. Let's see how I measure up.   And, yes, as you read this, you may notice I've become a tiny bit addicted to reading blogs.

It would seem that most of the blogs I follow have good information about running, training, all things racing, recovery, and gear. For example, Rachelle has only been running for approximately a year, and she is super fast! She qualifed for Boston earlier this month at the Utah Valley Marathon. She has GREAT information about various training techniques. If you're like me, and the words tempo run, intervals, and speed work mean nothing to you, check out her blog. She explains all of these very well.


My blog: All you'll get - if you're lucky - is how many miles I ran and MAYBE the pace at which I ran those miles (if I'm not too embarrassed). 

I notice that most successful bloggers are also willing to post pictures of themselves in various poses both serious and not-so-serious. Julia is great at this. She just completed her first marathon, she's an overall great person, and I love her blog! Her pictures are great and, if you follow her blog, you will come to love a little dog named Riley.

My blog: Uh....yeah. I hate pictures of myself. I really try to do this, but it takes 1367 attempts of taking the picture before getting one I'm satisfied with.

It seems that many of the successful bloggers are willing to "lay it all out there". They tell you their feelings, their goals, their plans, what they ate that day, etc.

My blog: While I envy that characteristic, I am more of a private person. I guess it's a little easier writing things down than actually expressing them out loud, but even that's not completely comfortable for me.

Some bloggers seem to "have it all together". They can be moms, employees, teachers, volunteers, and runners and still find time to sit down and write inspiring posts. Jen, Deanna, Small Town Runner, and Erin are all great examples of that. Some other bloggers (Janae and SR) also are very good about posting once every day, sometimes more.

My blog: I'm lucky to find the time to post twice per week. Inspiring? Probably not. I'm working on it, though.

Other bloggers have great advice on healthy living and eating. Lindsay has a great blog which I have found very helpful and educational. (Food can be good without sugar and preservatives???...Never would have guessed that.)

My blog: I'd love to take pictures of my healthy meals and provide readers with great recipes, but...well...how many pictures of cereal, sandwiches, chips, and spaghetti can one tolerate?

So, obviously, the outcome of this little test is a big FAIL on my part. But, that's OK. Still going to blog, anyway, so thanks for reading!  I promise to try harder in the future to be a better blogger.  Reading all the amazing blogs in my blog list will - I'm sure - motivate me!!

 Speaking of motivation from a blog:  Nikki has a beautiful quote on her blog about running.
"I run because it's so symbolic of life. You have to drive yourself to overcome the obstacles. You might feel that you can't. But then you find your inner strength, and realize you're capable of so much more than you thought." ~Arthur Blank

And Suzy has an awesome picture on her blog today:

These are pictures of my desk and shelves at work.  I think Suzy and I might have something other than running in common:

Oh yeah.....Go Pack Go!!!