Learn Hardcore Dutch: Ik wil rustig inademen voordat ik begin. - I want to breathe in calmly before I start.

In Dutch, modal verbs like wil (want), kan (can), moet (must), zal (will/shall) are followed by an infinitive at the end of the clause.

Structure here:

Ik – I
wil – want (1st person singular)
rustig inademen – to breathe in calmly

So the pattern is: subject + modal verb + (extra words) + infinitive → Ik wil rustig inademen.

Why is inademen written as one word here? I have seen forms like adem in as well.

Inademen is a separable verb in Dutch: in (prefix) + ademen (to breathe).

In the infinitive or at the end of a clause, it is usually written as one word:
- Ik wil rustig inademen.
When it is the main, conjugated verb in a simple main clause, it splits:
- Ik adem rustig in.

So:

Infinitive / at the end: inademen
Conjugated in main clause: ik adem in, hij ademt in

That is why you see both inademen and ademt in, depending on the sentence structure.

Why is rustig placed before inademen and not after it?

Rustig is an adverb here, describing how you breathe in.

In Dutch, adverbs like rustig, langzaam, snel, graag usually come before the infinitive in combinations with modal verbs:

Ik wil rustig inademen.
Ik kan goed zwemmen.
Ik wil graag komen.

Putting rustig after inademen (Ik wil inademen rustig) sounds unnatural and is normally not used in standard Dutch.

Could I say Ik wil rustig ademhalen instead of Ik wil rustig inademen? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say Ik wil rustig ademhalen; it is correct, but the meaning is slightly different.

Inademen = to inhale (the act of drawing air in)
Uitademen = to exhale (the act of breathing out)
Ademhalen = to breathe (general process of breathing)

So:

Ik wil rustig inademen focuses specifically on the inhaling part.
Ik wil rustig ademhalen is more general: to breathe calmly.

Both can be used in a relaxation or breathing exercise, but inademen is more specific to the in-breath.

What exactly does rustig mean here? Is it more like quietly or calmly?

In this context, rustig is best understood as calmly or slowly and calmly.

It can mean:

describing sound: quiet(ly)
describing mood or manner: calm(ly), relaxed
describing pace: slow(ly), unhurried

In Ik wil rustig inademen, it is about the manner and pace of breathing: not rushed, calm, controlled breathing.

Why do we use voordat and not just voor in this sentence?

Voordat is a conjunction meaning before (something happens) and it must be followed by a full clause (with subject and verb):

voordat ik begin – before I start

Voor by itself is a preposition meaning before / for and is followed by a noun, not a full clause:

voor het begin – before the start
voor het eten – before dinner

So:

Ik wil rustig inademen voordat ik begin. ✅ (before I start)
Ik wil rustig inademen voor ik begin. ✅ (colloquial; some speakers drop dat)
Ik wil rustig inademen voor het begin. ✅ (before the start – with a noun)

In standard written Dutch, voordat + full clause is the clearest choice here.

Why is the word order voordat ik begin and not voordat ik begin ik?

Voordat introduces a subordinate clause. In Dutch subordinate clauses, the finite verb goes to the end.

Pattern:

Main clause: Ik begin. → subject + verb
Subordinate clause: voordat ik begin → conjunction + subject + verb at the end

So:

Main clause: Ik begin.
Subordinate clause: voordat ik begin

Saying voordat ik begin ik breaks the normal Dutch word order and is incorrect.

Why do we say ik begin (present tense) when the action is in the future?

Dutch often uses the present tense to talk about near future actions, especially when the context clearly shows it is about something that will happen.

In voordat ik begin, the action described is understood as a moment in the future relative to the breathing:

First: Ik wil rustig inademen
Then: ik begin

You could also say voordat ik ga beginnen, but that is more wordy and often unnecessary. The simple present ik begin is natural and common for near future in Dutch, especially in time clauses with voordat, als, wanneer, zodra and so on.

Could I also say Ik wil inademen rustig voordat ik begin?

No, that word order is not natural in Dutch.

With a modal verb (wil) plus an infinitive (inademen) and an adverb (rustig), the normal order is:

Ik wil rustig inademen.

Adverbs like rustig usually come before the infinitive, not after it, in this structure.

So you should say:

Ik wil rustig inademen voordat ik begin. ✅
not
Ik wil inademen rustig voordat ik begin. ❌

Is ik wil the only way to say I want to here, or could I use other structures?

Ik wil is the most direct translation of I want (to) and is very common. Other possibilities, depending on nuance, are:

Ik zou graag rustig inademen voordat ik begin.
- More polite / tentative: I would like to breathe in calmly before I start.
Ik ga rustig inademen voordat ik begin.
- Focus on intention/plan: I am going to breathe in calmly before I start.

But if you simply mean I want to breathe in calmly before I start, Ik wil rustig inademen voordat ik begin is the straightforward and natural form.

Could I replace begin with start or starten in Dutch?

You can say:

Ik wil rustig inademen voordat ik begin.
Ik wil rustig inademen voordat ik start.

Both are possible.

A few notes:

Beginnen is a bit more general, used very widely: een gesprek beginnen, te werken beginnen, een cursus beginnen.
Starten is often used for technical processes, sports, or more informal contexts: de motor starten, de computer starten, de race starten.

In this kind of sentence, beginnen is usually the more neutral and slightly more common choice, but starten does not sound wrong.