You cannot fire a cannon from a canoe

We have talked at great lengths about microworkouts, performance vs. aesthetics, functional training, etc.—but it occurred to us that we never touched upon why we think this is so important. The main issue is the notion of foundational training vs. specific training, and how many people and trainers get this a bit backward.

Imagine yourself as a building project. If you want to build a house, then you need to start with the foundation. When the house is finished, you won’t be able to see the foundation—instead you’ll see all the pretty things—like the windows, the v-taper of the roof, and the general shape of the house. 

A house is a great analogy for how many people view fitness. They see the arms or chest of an athlete they admire and start doing triceps extensions. Or if a young kid sees a football player do amazing things on the football pitch, then they try to learn the same specific movements. But what both of them don’t take into account is the foundation these athletes build their athletic expression upon. 

The movements of a football player are worth very little if they aren’t built upon a foundation of strength, power, and endurance, and the impressive and powerful physique is not built on isolation movements, but through an immense volume of compound movements—like deadlifts, dips, presses, and pull-ups—these are the foundation, and stuff like biceps curls are the icing on the cake.   

Build an impressive foundation.  

So, if you’re training your kids, not training for anything specific, or past your physical prime—then we strongly suggest that you focus on building your foundation. 

Your foundation should focus on building your basics. Stuff like endurance, power, strength, and body composition should be the focus of your training. 

This means that most of your training should focus on compound movements and zone-2 cardio, with some interval training and power work sprinkled on top. 

You cannot fire a cannon from a canoe, and therefore, this approach is where you get the biggest return on investment. You would be hard pressed to find a single sport where strength, endurance, and power won’t yield great results, and you’ll probably also look better doing them too. 

So, look past the fancy stuff and focus on the basic foundational training. As Mark Rippetoe famously stated, “Strong people are harder to kill and of more use in general.”

We wish you good luck on your fitness journey, and until next time 

Scott and Lennart