Learn Hardcore Croatian: Prije treninga želim se malo zagrijati u dvorani. - Before training I want to warm up a bit in the hall.

The noun trening (training, practice) in the genitive singular becomes treninga.
So:
- prije treninga = before (the) training
- trening on its own is nominative (training as a subject), which is not correct after prije.

Pattern to remember:

prije + genitive
- prije posla (before work)
- prije ručka (before lunch)
- prije treninga (before training)

What case is treninga, and how is it formed?

Treninga is genitive singular of trening.

For many masculine nouns ending in a consonant, the genitive singular ending is -a:

prijatelj → prijatelja (friend → of the friend)
grad → grada (city → of the city)
trening → treninga (training → of the training)

We need this form because prije requires the genitive case.

Why is the verb zagrijati used in the infinitive: želim se malo zagrijati?

The verb željeti (to want) is usually followed by an infinitive in Croatian, just like to want + verb in English.

želim se malo zagrijati
literally: I want myself a bit to-warm-up

Structure:

želim – I want
se – reflexive pronoun (myself)
malo – a bit
zagrijati – to warm up (perfective infinitive)

You could also say:

Prije treninga želim da se malo zagrijem u dvorani.
(Before training I want that I warm up a bit in the gym.)

Both are correct, but željeti + infinitive (želim se zagrijati) is shorter and more natural in many situations.

Why is there a se in želim se malo zagrijati? Can I just say želim malo zagrijati?

Se is a reflexive pronoun, and the verb zagrijati se means to warm up (oneself), especially in a sports context.

zagrijati se = to warm oneself up, to do a warm-up
zagrijati (without se) = to warm something (else) up
e.g. zagrijati vodu (to heat up water), zagrijati prostoriju (to warm up the room)

So:

želim se malo zagrijati = I want to warm up a bit (myself).
želim malo zagrijati would sound like I want to warm something up a bit, but it’s unclear what. It’s not correct for “warm up (for training)” unless you add an object.

Therefore, se is necessary here.

Why is se placed after želim and before malo zagrijati? Could I say želim malo se zagrijati?

Se is a clitic (short unstressed word) and Croatian has fairly strict rules for where clitics go in a sentence.

In a simple clause, clitics usually go in second position, right after the first stressed word or phrase:

Prije treninga želim se malo zagrijati.
Želim se malo zagrijati u dvorani.

Other positions like želim malo se zagrijati sound unnatural or wrong to native speakers. The typical pattern with želim is:

želim se
- (adverb) + infinitive
  e.g. želim se dobro odmoriti, želim se malo zabaviti, želim se malo zagrijati.

What is the difference between zagrijati se and zagrijavati se?

This is an aspect difference (perfective vs imperfective):

zagrijati se – perfective
- focuses on the completion of the warming up
- “to (successfully) warm up”
- used for a single, whole action
zagrijavati se – imperfective
- focuses on the process / ongoing activity
- “to be warming up”, “to warm up (habitually / repeatedly)”
- used when you talk about duration or repetition

In the sentence:

Prije treninga želim se malo zagrijati u dvorani.

the perfective zagrijati se works well because the speaker is thinking of doing a warm-up as a single, completed action before training.

You could also say:

Prije treninga volim se malo zagrijavati u dvorani.

Here zagrijavati se suggests more the habit or process of warming up.

What does dvorani mean exactly, and how is it different from teretani or sali?

Dvorana is a general word for a hall, especially a sports hall / gymnasium in a school or sports center.

u dvorani = in the (sports) hall / in the gym (hall-type space)

Differences:

dvorana – large hall, often for sports or events (sports hall, arena-like).
teretana – weight room / fitness gym with machines and weights.
sala – room / hall, often used for:
- sports (sportska sala)
- dance (plesna sala)
- meetings, lectures, weddings, etc.

So:

u dvorani – in the hall (here, most likely a sports hall)
u teretani – in the gym (where you lift weights)
u sali – in the room/hall (a bit less specific; needs context)

What case is dvorani, and why is that form used?

Dvorani here is locative singular of dvorana.

Feminine nouns ending in -a typically form locative singular in -i:

škola → u školi (school → in school)
kuća → u kući (house → in the house)
dvorana → u dvorani (hall → in the hall)

We use the locative case because of the preposition u meaning in a place (location, no movement):

u dvorani = in the hall
u školi = in the school
u kući = in the house

Why is it u dvorani and not u dvoranu?

Croatian distinguishes between location and movement with u:

u + locative = in (where something is)
- u dvorani (in the hall)
- u školi (in the school)
- u gradu (in the city)
u + accusative = into (where something is going to)
- u dvoranu (into the hall)
- u školu (into the school)
- u grad (into the city)

In the sentence:

Prije treninga želim se malo zagrijati u dvorani.

the focus is on being located in the hall while warming up, not on going into it. That’s why u dvorani (locative) is used, not u dvoranu (accusative).

What is the role of malo in želim se malo zagrijati and where can it go?

Malo means a little, a bit. Here it modifies the verb zagrijati se and softens the statement:

želim se zagrijati – I want to warm up
želim se malo zagrijati – I want to warm up a bit

Common positions:

želim se malo zagrijati – most natural
prije treninga se želim malo zagrijati u dvorani – also OK, just a different word order
želim se zagrijati malo – possible, but less common in this specific phrase

You generally don’t put malo between se and the verb infinitive in a way that splits up the reflexive form:

se malo zagrijati – natural
se zagrijati malo – also possible
but not something like se zagrijati jako malo in the middle of the verb phrase; that feels clumsy.

Why is there no word for “the” in prije treninga or u dvorani? How do I know if it’s “the hall” or “a hall”?

Croatian has no articles (no “a/an” or “the”). The distinction is usually understood from:

context
word order
stress / emphasis
additional words (e.g. ovaj – this, onaj – that, neki – some)

So:

prije treninga can be before training, before the training, or before my training depending on context.
u dvorani can be in a hall, in the hall, or in the gym (hall-type gym).

In this sentence, a natural English translation would be:

Before training I want to warm up a bit in the gym / in the hall.

Whether you say the gym or a gym in English depends on what is already known in the conversation, not on any specific word in Croatian.

Can the word order change, for example: Želim se malo zagrijati u dvorani prije treninga?

Yes. Croatian word order is fairly flexible, especially for adverbial phrases like prije treninga and u dvorani.

Both are correct:

Prije treninga želim se malo zagrijati u dvorani.
Želim se malo zagrijati u dvorani prije treninga.

They express essentially the same idea. The difference is in emphasis:

Starting with Prije treninga slightly emphasizes the time frame (before training).
Putting prije treninga at the end may make it feel like an afterthought or extra detail.

But grammatically, both are fine and natural.

How do you pronounce prije treninga želim se malo zagrijati u dvorani? Any tricky parts for English speakers?

A rough phonetic guide (using English-like sounds):

prije – pree-yeh
- two syllables: pri‑je
treninga – TREH-nee-nga
- stress on the first syllable: TRe‑ni‑nga
- ng as in sing, then a separate g sound
želim – zhe-leem
- ž as in French jour or English vision
se – seh
malo – MAH-lo
zagrijati – za-gree-YAH-tee
- z as in zoo
- gri like gree
- stress on ya: za-gri-YA-ti
u – oo (like food)
dvorani – dvo-RAH-nee
- dv together like dv in dvornik (no English equivalent, but just say dv quickly)
- stress on ra: dvo-RA-ni

Main tricky bits:

Rolling r (Croatian r is tapped or rolled).
The ž sound in želim.
The cluster dv in dvorani.
Keeping all vowels clearly pronounced; none are silent.