A house needs a foundation, and so does sport
A house won’t last long if its foundation is weak. The same goes for training, nutrition and health: if you don’t understand why you are doing something, the result is left to chance.
This article is not a call to simply read more. It is more of a reminder that an athlete, a coach or a recreational trainee needs understanding as well as a programme.
A house without a foundation collapses
The reasons behind this trend are complex, but largely known. This year I came across an article on Alkeemia titled “Constant use of smart devices leads to brain degeneration”. The text made me think, because it described something very familiar: online, we no longer read calmly, we just skim over the text.
It also referred to an analysis of a sociological media study from 2014, according to which the audience for digital and audiovisual media is growing at great speed. At the same time, the number of people who don’t read anything at all is growing. This is not just a problem for schools or literature. It affects sport too.
The original reference is here: REFERENCE.
Honestly, I have carried the same question with me for a long time: who are we writing for, if a longer train of thought already feels too hard before we even start? Bookshops are full of books, the internet is full of advice, yet there is less and less deep engagement. It’s a paradox.
Why is a house a good image for training?
With age and mental maturity, one thing has become clear: complex connections are easiest to explain through analogies. Just as a house without a foundation will probably collapse quite quickly, you won’t get very far in any field if you don’t understand the deeper connections.
In training, this can mean a very simple situation. Someone follows a training programme because somebody said “that’s how it’s done”. They eat one way one week and another way the next, because they spotted a new trick somewhere. Some things may even work for a while. But without understanding why it works, it’s hard to repeat or adapt it later.
Competence doesn’t come only from looking at pictures, slides or video clips. They can be convenient and useful. But convenient doesn’t mean deep. Reading, thinking and connecting ideas force the brain to do work that a quick video often doesn’t demand.
More than one young student specialising in bodybuilding coaching may wonder, in physical education classes, why they need to know about aldosterone, the hormone of the adrenal cortex. Years later, it may turn out that exactly this kind of knowledge helps explain why a body on stage looks drier, bigger or more powerful at a given moment.
How do you bring theory and practice together?
Can you get better just by reading a lot? No. You don’t become a good violinist just by reading about playing the violin. The same goes for the gym. Practice is unavoidable. Exercise, repetition, feel and making mistakes are all part of learning.
But practice without theory is often blind experimentation. Just as there are body and mind, there are practice and theory. Behind every training decision there is some reason, even if the person doesn’t know that reason themselves. The question is whether the reason has been thought through or simply taken over from someone else.
A simple truth: if you do something but can’t explain why you do it that way, it may not be sustainable. Maybe it suits you right now. Maybe it doesn’t. Without understanding, you can’t tell the difference.
It’s the same story in nutrition. A diet is not just a menu. What matters is understanding why to start the day with dietary fats or carbohydrates, how the hormone leptin affects us, what omega-3 fatty acids are for, and why the ratio between omega-3 and 6 fatty acids in food is important. These questions are not dry theory. They help you make better decisions when a ready-made plan no longer fits.
Building the house starts with deep engagement
So what actually helps? Start small. Read one proper paragraph to the end. Think about what it says about your training or nutrition. Notice whether you want to grab your phone or start a new video right away. That resistance is familiar to many.
Don’t collect knowledge just to look smarter. Collect it so you can act better. If you buy a training programme, take a course or listen to the advice of someone more experienced, think along. Ask: why exactly this way? What does it change in my case? When does it stop applying?
An athlete doesn’t have to be a scientist. But they could be curious. They could want to understand the background, principles and connections behind what they do. Otherwise they remain dependent on the next programme, the next recommendation and the next person who tells them what to do.
Want to know, read, think, experiment and learn to connect theory with practice.
FAQ
Are video tutorials useless, then?
No. Video can show technique very well. The problem arises when all learning stays at watching and deeper understanding doesn’t develop.
Does a recreational trainee need to know hormones and biochemistry?
You don’t have to know everything. But the basic principles help you understand why training, recovery and nutrition are connected.
How do I start if I don’t have a reading habit?
Start with a short text and read it to the end. Next time, take a slightly longer one. The goal is not speed, but deep engagement.
Author: Janar Rückenberg
Come and train! ArtGym
