Does blogging make you a better writer, or does it make you a worse writer? As I look back at my old posts, I wonder. On the one hand, blogging is an opportunity for me to practice writing----to express in words what is going on in my mind. On the other hand, blogging is a freer, more informal form of expression than writing papers, which requires more precision, attention to style, etc. That's why some of my papers flow better than my blog posts.
I'd say that the continual practice of writing through blogging helps me. If I were to take a vacation from blogging and then sit down to write a paper, it would be a struggle for me. But I have to remember that, when I write an actual paper or article, my style needs to be crisper and more elegant.