Another year has passed and it is time to review what has happened in the past few months.
It has been almost exactly five years since I published the very first article on this blog with ” What is fitness? “.
So Fitvolution is slowly not only one of the largest, but also one of the oldest fitness blogs in the German-speaking area. Since the two groups overlap quite a bit, staying power definitely seems to pay off here.
A lot has happened in these five years, which I especially notice when I look at it from a distance. I made a conscious decision not to change the content of my first article in order to remind myself again and again how my writing style and thus my blog has changed during this time.
In today’s article I want to follow the annual tradition of looking back at the last year and looking ahead to the current year.
What happened last year
If I had to sum up in one sentence, I would say that 2019 got off to a very strong start and then got a little rockier from the middle of the year. Ultimately, this is mainly due to the fact that once again I had planned on more than was realistically achievable. In life things just always come in between and differently from what you planned.
But for this I not only set myself goals, but also regularly deal intensively with my priorities. So I always know where to put back in case of doubt. Overall, however, I am satisfied with the development.
Fans, followers and readers
The number of readers has continued to develop positively. When I think about how we celebrated the 9,000 visitors to Fitvolution back in June 2015, it is impressive that an average of ten times as many readers found their way to the website in 2019.
The highlight was June 2019 with just over 140,000 readers on the site. Since then, the number of readers has decreased slightly, which is also due to the fact that I concentrated more on FiBloKo in the second half of the year. The social media followers have hardly changed in the last year despite greater activity, while the newsletter subscribers have continued to grow and I have now almost made up for the losses due to the (voluntary) measures under the GDPR.
Design and structure of the page
I have further optimized the design and structure of the site over the past year. My goal was to make the site look a bit more modern and friendlier, and I think I succeeded quite well. The new header logo makes it clearer to the new visitor who is behind the blog and what I’m talking about here.
Above all, I wanted the site to be faster and easier to use on mobile phones. That is certainly not perfect, but a lot better than it was a year ago. To do this, however, I have to revise every single article and page. For this reason, with a little search you will still be able to find some pages that are not yet fully optimized.
The changes this year will also have been noticed by readers who visit the blog regularly. I find the comparison to the version of the website in 2015 particularly impressive.
The third FiBloKo took place
The FiBloKo is very closely connected to Fitvolution and now occupies a large part of my time. In 2019 I was allowed to do it for the third time in Hanover and it was a very great event again. Here, too, I find it very impressive what has emerged from our fitness blogger community on Facebook. This time we were less than we had hoped with around 70 participants, but at least a few more participants than in the previous year and the feedback from the participants was very positive. For this reason, I am also looking forward to trying to take the event one step forward next year.
The time that I have to spend preparing, organizing and running this event is of course missing in other areas. The result was that it had some of the same effects on the blog as mentioned earlier.
My second book Muscle Building Basics
Over the last year I have been writing my second book again and again, which was finished a few weeks ago and is now finally on sale since today. In addition to the bastard killer , which helps you to overcome your inner weaker self and achieve your goals, you can now do the first real “no bullshit” with muscle building basics “-Guide for effective muscle building.
Currently only the basic package is completely available. The Value and Premium packages should be available by March 31 at the latest. also be available. However, they can already be presented at a special price.
Target / actual goals set
To conclude the review, I would now like to look again at all the goals that I have set myself (publicly). Those are all goals from my last birthday article 4 years Fitvolution and from other articles from last year that I could find or remember. This includes both sporting and goals for this blog and the company behind it.
✔ Relocation of Fitvolution UG from Aichelberg to Adendorf (near Lüneburg)
✔ I’ve made some improvements to the site. It is now a little faster and, to a large extent, easier to use on mobile devices. There are still a few things to do and a few pages to rebuild, but I’ve done the most important thing.
✔ With more social media activity, I wanted to enable you and my other readers to take a look behind the scenes. Even if I lagged behind what I wanted to achieve with my Instagram and Facebook posts, I achieved my set goal with (almost) daily story posts.
✔ I have successfully got used to training in the morning and am benefiting from the advantages of it. For some of the disadvantages, however, I am still trying to find solutions.
✔ In September I ran the Ulm Marathon my first marathon since my foot injury.
✔ At the same time I have managed to get into the best shape of my life so far. It’s best to have a look at my Instagram profile , if you’re not already following me there, and take a look at the pictures of my entire change.
~ 38 new blog articles have appeared. That’s less than the 45 I’ve planned, but more than the 32 last year.
~ I had planned to offer my second product, muscle building basics, for sale. However, not all building blocks are ready. For this reason (as mentioned above) only the basic package with the eBook is available for sale in digital form so far
X Unfortunately, I was unable to achieve the desired growth in my social media channels. I had hoped for more on Instagram in particular. Due to lack of time, however, I was unable to implement a lot of what I had planned. However, since my priority is and will remain the blog, I decided to stick back here.
X I had made up my mind that I would hand over some work around the blog. In addition to my main job, it just keeps getting a little too much for me. However, if I want Fitvolution and FiBloKo to grow further, I have to get even more support. Currently I am still doing most things myself. The topic will definitely be with me this year.
How Fitvolution will continue in 2020
So much for last year. Then let’s look ahead now. I have some cool things to do in 2020. In the following I would like to give you a brief overview of some of the key points of what should happen here in the next few months.
Write 25 new, focused articles
There will continue to be new articles on a regular basis, which are geared in various subject areas to convey the really important things to you. These should help you to lead a fit and healthy life in an easier way. I want to try to orientate myself as strongly as possible on relevant core topics, where I can really deliver real added value.
At least 25 completely new blog articles should appear this way in 2020.
Revise old articles regularly
Why always reinvent the wheel? In the meantime, almost 250 articles have been published here on Fitvolution. Some of them could use a new coat of paint. Things change over time and I might write a little different about some topics today than I did then. In some cases, my level of knowledge and / or the level of science has simply changed.
Here I will focus on the most-read articles. In addition to this, I will also be reissuing articles that I think deserve even more attention. Sometimes a new coat of paint can help.
I have not yet committed myself 100% in this regard. However, I think that in the future I will probably revise one or two old articles a month.
Write more guest articles
In my early days as a blogger, I was quite active in posting guest articles. Although I’ve even received inquiries over the last year, not a single guest article of mine has appeared on another blog. That should change this year and I will take the time to publish some of my content on other blogs and in online magazines and also point out Fitvolution – the fitness blog for the busy.
I would also like to try to achieve one of my big goals this year and get published in a big (online) fitness magazine. I still don’t really know how to do it best. So if you have a good idea or tips and / or know someone, please write me a comment or an e-mail. 😉
Further development of the bastard killer and muscle building basics
As mentioned before, I will be finishing the content of my Muscle Building Basics Value and Premium packages in the next few weeks.
I have now received a lot of positive feedback from the readers of my first book, as well as a few suggestions for improvement. I will probably incorporate these into a second, expanded edition in the next few months. One component that has so far been neglected, for example, are negative or limiting beliefs. In the second edition I also want to go into my personal negative experiences with my inner weaker self.
If you have already bought the bastard-killer through Digistore24 or should still do so in the next few months, you will get a free upgrade from me as soon as the new version appears.
FiBloKo the fourth
A FiBloKo will take place again in 2020 and we have set ourselves the goal of making the event a whole lot bigger in 2020 than it was in 2019. Accordingly, FiBloKo will probably take some time this year. However, I will try to make better use of the potential synergies with my blog here. If you do anything in the sports and fitness area or are thinking about starting something in this area, then you should not miss the event!
FiBloKo Podcast
I wouldn’t have thought it myself, but I’m actually one of the podcasters. A few days ago I started recording the first episodes for the FiBloKo podcast together with Torsten from ausuranceblog.de. This podcast will probably only be of interest to a small portion of my readers here. The focus here is on the business behind the blog.
In the podcast we will deal with all sorts of topics that are relevant to anyone who wants to become more successful online in the sports and fitness sector. If that is of interest to you, you should definitely check it out. The best thing to do is to sign up for the newsletter on the FiBloKo website so that you will be the first to know when the first episode goes live.
No longer doing everything yourself
I want to get even more support in the future in areas where I don’t know my way around perfectly. There are just things that other people can do much better and faster. So I can concentrate on my core competencies and make the best possible use of my time.
In addition, I am currently thinking of posting an internship. Maybe this way I can find someone who is interested in the topic and can support me here and there and learn a few things from me at the same time. In the medium term, I could well imagine employing a working student for Fitvolution and FiBloKo topics.
Conclusion on Fitvolution after 5 years
As you can see, a lot has happened in the last year. When we look back together how it all started five years ago, I am very proud of what has become of this blog.
I hope that I will be able to help you and my other readers for at least another five years with my articles, books and other content to achieve their goals and to lead a fitter and healthier life. I am still highly motivated to provide the best possible content here and to continuously develop the site.
