A rotor blade monitoring system for use with a wind turbine. The wind turbine includes at least one rotor blade. The rotor blade includes a sidewall that extends between a root portion and a tip portion. The rotor blade monitoring system includes a fiber optic strand that is coupled to the rotor blade sidewall. The fiber optic strand has a length that extends from the root portion towards the tip portion. A plurality of sensors are coupled to the fiber optic strand. Each sensor of the plurality of sensors is axially spaced along the fiber optic strand and is configured to transmit a signal indicative of a position of a respective portion of the rotor blade.