Learn Hardcore German: Nach dem Training fühlt sich meine Atmung kräftig und frei an. - After the workout my breathing feels strong and free.

German uses the separable reflexive verb sich anfühlen to express how something feels (its sensation), especially when the thing itself is the subject.

sich anfühlen = to feel (to the touch / as a sensation)
- Es fühlt sich gut an. – It feels good.
- Meine Atmung fühlt sich kräftig an. – My breathing feels strong.

In the sentence, fühlt … an is the split form of anfühlen, and sich is the required reflexive pronoun:

anfühlen → fühlt … an (because of verb-second rule in main clauses)
Meine Atmung (subject) → sich (reflexive pronoun referring to that subject)

You could use ist instead, but it slightly changes the nuance:

Meine Atmung ist kräftig und frei. – My breathing is strong and free (a more neutral description).
Meine Atmung fühlt sich kräftig und frei an. – My breathing feels strong and free (emphasizes the perceived sensation).

What exactly is the difference between „sich fühlen“ and „sich anfühlen“?

Both can be translated with to feel, but they’re used differently:

sich fühlen – how a person (or living being) feels internally:
- Ich fühle mich müde. – I feel tired.
- Er fühlt sich krank. – He feels ill.
sich anfühlen – how something seems/feels (as a sensation), often with non-human subjects:
- Das Wasser fühlt sich kalt an. – The water feels cold.
- Das Kissen fühlt sich weich an. – The pillow feels soft.
- Meine Atmung fühlt sich kräftig und frei an.

So here, the breathing is treated like an object with a certain feel, so sich anfühlen is the natural choice.

Why do we say „fühlt sich meine Atmung … an“ if „meine Atmung“ is the subject? Shouldn’t it be „Ich fühle mich“?

In this sentence, the subject really is meine Atmung (“my breathing”):

Nach dem Training – adverbial phrase (time)
fühlt – finite verb
sich – reflexive pronoun
meine Atmung – subject
kräftig und frei – predicate adjectives
an – separable prefix of anfühlen

The reflexive pronoun sich refers back to the subject meine Atmung. It’s not “I feel myself”, but “my breathing feels (to me) strong and free”.

You could form a different sentence focusing on you as the subject:

Nach dem Training fühle ich meine Atmung als kräftig und frei.
(After training, I feel/perceive my breathing as strong and free.)

But that’s a different structure and less natural here. The original sentence describes the quality of the breathing itself.

Why does the sentence start with „Nach dem Training“? Could I put it later?

Yes, you could move it, but German often puts time or place information at the beginning. The key rule is: in a main clause, the finite verb must be in second position.

Current version:

Nach dem Training (position 1)
fühlt (position 2 – the verb)
sich meine Atmung kräftig und frei an (rest of the clause)

You could also say:

Meine Atmung fühlt sich nach dem Training kräftig und frei an.

Both are correct. The meaning is the same; the original version just emphasizes the time (after training).

Why is it „Nach dem Training“ and not „Nach das Training“ or „Nach den Training“?

The preposition nach (in the time sense “after”) always takes the dative case.

das Training (nominative, neuter)
Dative singular neuter: dem Training

So you must say:

Nach dem Training …

„Nach das Training“ would be accusative and is wrong here, and „den Training“ mixes the wrong article ending with the neuter noun.

Why are „Training“ and „Atmung“ capitalized?

In German, all nouns are capitalized, regardless of their position in the sentence.

das Training – noun, therefore Training
die Atmung – noun, therefore Atmung

Adjectives like kräftig and frei are not capitalized here, because they are ordinary adjectives used predicatively.

What gender are „Training“ and „Atmung“, and how do you know?

das Training – neuter, so:
- Nominative singular: das Training
- Dative singular: dem Training (as in the sentence)
die Atmung – feminine, so:
- Nominative singular: die Atmung
- Possessive: meine Atmung (since meine is the feminine form of mein in nominative singular)

There is no simple universal rule to predict gender; you generally learn it with the noun:

das Training
die Atmung

Why don’t „kräftig“ and „frei“ have endings like „kräftige“ or „freien“?

Adjectives only take endings when they directly modify a noun (attributive position):

eine kräftige Atmung – a strong breathing
freie Atmung – free breathing

In the sentence, kräftig and frei occur in predicate position (after a verb like sein, werden, scheinen, sich anfühlen), describing the state of the subject:

Meine Atmung fühlt sich kräftig und frei an.

Predicate adjectives in German almost never take endings. So no -e, -en, etc. here.

Could I say „Nach dem Training ist meine Atmung kräftig und frei“ instead?

Yes, that sentence is grammatically correct and natural.

The nuance is slightly different:

ist kräftig und frei – states a fact about the condition of your breathing.
fühlt sich kräftig und frei an – emphasizes how the breathing feels to you as an experience.

Both would be understood, but the original version is more about perceived sensation.

Can I drop „an“ and just say „fühlt sich kräftig und frei“?

No, you shouldn’t. sich anfühlen is a fixed separable verb:

infinitive: sich anfühlen
main clause: es fühlt sich … an

If you drop an, you get sich fühlen, which is a different verb:

Ich fühle mich kräftig. – I feel strong (I, as a person).
Meine Atmung fühlt sich kräftig an. – My breathing feels strong (the breathing itself has that quality).

So in the given sentence, an is required to complete sich anfühlen.

Why is „sich“ before „meine Atmung“? Could it be „fühlt meine Atmung sich … an“?

Both orders are grammatically possible:

Nach dem Training fühlt sich meine Atmung kräftig und frei an.
Nach dem Training fühlt meine Atmung sich kräftig und frei an.

General tendencies:

Short pronouns (like sich, ihn, es) usually come earlier in the middle field.
Longer phrases (like meine Atmung) usually come later.

That’s why version 1 is more natural. Version 2 is understandable but sounds a bit less smooth in everyday speech.

What is the difference between „Atem“ and „Atmung“? Could I also say „mein Atem“?

Both relate to breath / breathing, but they’re used slightly differently:

der Atem – the breath itself (often more concrete or static):
- mein Atem – my breath
- Der Atem geht schneller. – The breath becomes faster.
die Atmung – the process of breathing, more physiological / process-oriented:
- die Atmung verbessern – to improve breathing
- Meine Atmung fühlt sich kräftig an.

You could say:

Nach dem Training fühlt sich mein Atem kräftig und frei an.

That’s understandable and not wrong, but Atmung fits very well when you are talking about your breathing as a bodily function / process.