2019 has been a year of the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, something I’ll be discussing in way more detail in my end of year reflection blog post (coming your way soon!)
Today I wanted to just talk about Kayla in the City and where this little blog has been in 2019. Blogging is not my full-time gig, not even close. For this most part, this blog is a passion project of mine. A passion project that has changed my life in many ways, but it’s something I do on the side.
In 2019 I published almost 90 blog posts. Holy shit, 90!!! I just went back and counted twice because I didn’t believe it.
I feel a lot of guilt when I go weeks without writing a blog post. But realizing I still showed up and blogged 90 times in the last year? I’m proud of you, Kayla.
At the end of every year, I take a step back and do some blog analyzing so I can start planning for the new year. Before the end of the year, I’ll do a super deep dive into my analytics seeing what posts resonated with y’all, where people discovered the blog and things like that. It’s important to see how people find KITC and to see what posts you like — I want to keep serving up the content you want to see!
Today I wanted to highlight YOUR favorite posts from the year based on page views, as well as a few of my own favorites, from 2019. Plus I’m giving you a little peek into where the blog is heading in 2020…
Your Favorite Posts from 2019
1. Glosslab Review: Is the $89 Unlimited Gel Manicure and Pedicure Membership Worth It?
I’m not surprised this blog post ended up being hands down the most viewed blog post I wrote in 2019: Glosslab is slowly taking the nail salon scene by storm. I hear they’re opening a Noho location soon and I cannot wait 🙂
And FYI: I’m still a happy [paying] member! I go once a week for a regular manicure (Dazzle Dry polish is a gamechanger!) and every other week for a pedicure. Financially it’s been worthwhile for me as I’m someone that always likes to have polish on my nails.
2. How To Create A Cohesive Instagram Feed
Even though I don’t work in social media as my main gig anymore, I do love it when I get to put on my marketing hat for a blog post. While I won’t pretend my instagram feed is the most “perfect” when it comes to aesthetics, I have learned a thing (or 12) about creating a cohesive instagram feed and aesthetic over the years.
3. What You Need To Know About The Bar Method
I’m SO happy this blog post got so many views this year. I love The Bar Method — obviously I’m a bit biased as an instructor — but the reason I auditioned in the first place was because I love this low-impact, well-researched, method so damn much.
It makes me happy to see other people are curious to learn more and I hope it inspires people to check out their local BM studio.
4. Breaking Up Is Hard To Do
Ah, of course, the break-up blog post makes the list. As you can imagine this post was SO HARD to write. While I understand not everyone would want to talk about their break-up so publicly, ultimately I’m happy I have decided to take this route. It’s allowed me to connect with so many people currently going through this or who recently have. Writing about it has also given me a much-needed outlet.
5. My Super Honest Review of Glossier’s Most Popular Products
2019 is the year Kayla became OBSESSED with all things Glossier. And it looks like I’m not alone 🙂 FYI: I’m still using most of these products as a part of my daily make-up routine.
6. Here’s How I’m Tracking My Income as a Yoga Teacher and Blogger
I try to be as transparent as possible when it comes to my career… while also not spilling ALL the beans about my personal finances. Gotta keep some things private.
I’ve continued to use this method to track my income and it’s been SO helpful as a way to visualize how much money I’m really making each week. It’s pretty cool that I now have almost a full year’s worth of income data! It will be super helpful going forward as I figure out changes I want to make to my schedule as an instructor.
7. Currently Loving: Dainty Gold Earrings from Mejuri
I won’t pretend I’m a fashion blogger, but I do love seeing that you liked this more fashion-y post about Mejuri and their amazing jewelry. BTW, I still wearing my trio of Mejuri earrings every day 🙂 and haven’t taken my hoops off since I bought them.
8. 6 Things I Wish People Knew About Being a Fitness Instructor
An important read for anyone that attends fitness classes. Cut your favorite fitness instructors (and yoga teachers!) some slack — they’ve probably been awake since 5AM 😂
9. “When Are You Moving In Together?”
Yes, I’m still including this even though Jeremy and I are no longer together. This post got MASSIVE pageviews when it first came out — y’all eat all my relationship content UP.
This blog post was a long time coming, I got asked that question at least once a week for the majority of our 8-year long relationship. Whether it’s “when are you moving in together” or “when are you getting married” or “when are you having kids” I really loved writing this blog post for those of us sick of the constant questions.
10. End of the Year Journaling Challenge: 31 Questions To Reflect and Intention Set for 2020
Even though this post only went live earlier this month, I was so excited to see that it was one of the top 10 most viewed blog posts of 2019. I’ve been posting these prompts every day on Instagram and it’s been so cool connecting with all of you that have been answering throughout the month. It’s also kept me accountable to sit down and journal most days!
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My Favorite Posts from 2019
How to Grow Your Blog With Google Analytics
I’m always SHOCKED when blogger friends tell me that they don’t look at Google Analytics or don’t understand how to use the data in a useful way. And thus this super nerdy deep dive into Google Analytics for bloggers was born 🙂 I could chat about this stuff all damn day.
Dear Fitness Industry, Can We Please Stop Doing This?
I’m proud of this one. I posted a smaller version of it on instagram and was so thrilled with all the conversation it sparked. It inspired the teacher amanger at Bar Method Noho to send a note out to all the instructors about being mindful of language during the holiday season. I know there is SO much work to be done in the fitness industry regarding this topic, but making a small impact at the studio I work for feels like something.
Take Your Broken Heart and Make It Into Art… Maybe
I am still grappling with what I talked about in this blog post. I feel this pressure to use the raw emotion of my break-up as creative fuel to create some masterpiece. Like shouldn’t I be writing a novel or a song or a book of poems or SOMETHING? Yet I’ve felt like my least creative self since the break-up. All I want to do is sit like a lump and watch every episode of Rupaul’s Drag Race for a 3rd time.
Articulating this break-up and translating it to written words has felt hard for me. But I think I captured a bit of what I’m going through in this post.
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What to Expect in 2020
Kayla in the City started as a fitness blog in 2011. A place for me to talk about my own fitness journey, the zumba classes I was taking (OMG REMEMBER ZUMBA?!) and this weird thing called almond milk that I had just tried for the first time.
This blog has come a long way. And has gone through many subtle changes over the years.
From fitness blog to wellness blog to… a lot of different things now. I go through phases where I feel like I should be niching down. Gosh Kayla, just stick to one topic. But the truth is — I can’t. I’m a multi-faceted, multi-passionate, multi-career-ed, gal. And I imagine many of you can relate.
Looking at what posts performed “well” this year I’m excited to see that it’s a hodgepodge of things. There’s the lifestyle-y content I wrote about make-up and jewelry which are SEO-friendly and cute on Pinterest. But there’s also the “real-life” stuff that has nothing to do with SEO or Pinterest. Hello, anytime I talk about the breakup…
This gives me hope and permission to continue to follow my gut and write about the shit that I’m excited to talk about. It doesn’t have to all be SEO driven, Pinterest-friendly content. And thank god!! While I enjoy writing that stuff, the thing about blogging I’ve always loved is reading posts in which I can CONNECT with the person behind the screen. The evergreen content is nice but doesn’t pack that same personal punch in my opinion.
Kayla in the City: Now
If I had to give the thesis statement of what Kayla in the City is now, going into 2020 and what I’m trying to do with this blog I’d say it’s an online platform devoted to inspiring millennial women to live their best life while blending wellness and hustle. Before I press “publish” on a blog post I ask myself if the blog post fits into the above criteria.
Ultimately this blog is about my life, and that’s really been the case since the early days in 2011. It’s about being a millennial, female, in Manhattan. Navigating life. Navigating my first break-up sadly right now. And trying to figure things out. Quite literally this blog is me, Kayla, and my life in the city, New York.
As always I’d love to hear from YOU and what you’d love to see more of in 2020, feel free to reach out via email [kaylainthecity@gmail.com] or instagram 💗
Thank you ALL so much for following along on the blog (and instagram!) during this crazy, crazy year.
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