zuò lìliàngxùnliàn yǐqián yào rèshēn.

Warm up before doing strength training.

Breakdown of zuò lìliàngxùnliàn yǐqián yào rèshēn.

• 做zuò: to do
• 以前yǐqián: before
• 要yào: to need to
• 热身rèshēn: to warm up

Questions & Answers about zuò lìliàngxùnliàn yǐqián yào rèshēn.

Why does 以前 come after 做力量训练?

Because 以前 attaches to a phrase and means before that action or time.

So:

• 做力量训练 = do strength training
• 做力量训练以前 = before doing strength training

This is a very common pattern in Chinese:

• 吃饭以前 = before eating
• 睡觉以前 = before sleeping
• 上课以前 = before class / before going to class

So the structure here is:

[action] + 以前 + 要 + [main action]

= Before doing X, you should/must do Y.

Why is there no subject like 你 or 我们 in the sentence?

Chinese often leaves out the subject when it is obvious, general, or not important.

In this sentence, the idea is a general rule:

• (You/people) should warm up before strength training.

So the subject is understood from context. If you want, you could add one:

• 你做力量训练以前要热身。
• 我们做力量训练以前要热身。

But without a subject, it sounds natural and general.

What does 要 mean here? Is it want to?