Feel like I’m “prepping” but not actually improving

I’ve been prepping for IB in some form for a few months now (reading guides, watching YouTube vids, light networking), but I don’t actually feel better.

I understand concepts when I read them, but if someone asked me to explain them cold, I’d probably stumble.

Is this just part of the process or am I doing prep wrong? Would appreciate any perspective from people who’ve been through recruiting already.