Learn Hardcore German: Nach der Anstrengung mache ich eine Pause im Garten. - After the effort I take a break in the garden.

The noun Anstrengung (effort, exertion) is feminine.
Feminine nouns:
- Nominative: die Anstrengung (subject form)
- Dative: der Anstrengung

Since nach requires dative, you must say nach der Anstrengung, not nach die Anstrengung.

What exactly does nach mean here, and how is it different from danach?

In this sentence, nach is a preposition meaning after (in time):

Nach der Anstrengung = after the effort / after exerting myself

Danach is an adverb meaning after that / afterwards and does not take a noun directly.

Compare:

Nach der Anstrengung mache ich eine Pause.
After the effort, I take a break. (preposition + noun in dative)
Ich strenge mich an. Danach mache ich eine Pause.
I exert myself. After that, I take a break. (adverb referring to the previous sentence/situation)

You cannot say danach der Anstrengung; you either use nach + dative or danach by itself.

Why is the word order Nach der Anstrengung mache ich … and not Nach der Anstrengung ich mache …?

German main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb (here mache) must be in second position in the sentence, no matter what comes first.

In this sentence:

Nach der Anstrengung = first element (a prepositional phrase)
mache = second element (the verb)
ich eine Pause im Garten = the rest

So:

Correct: Nach der Anstrengung mache ich eine Pause im Garten.
Incorrect: Nach der Anstrengung ich mache eine Pause im Garten. (verb is not in second position)

Can I also say Ich mache nach der Anstrengung eine Pause im Garten? Does that change the meaning?

Yes, you can say that, and the basic meaning stays the same.

Two natural variants are:

Nach der Anstrengung mache ich eine Pause im Garten.
→ Slight emphasis on after the effort (time frame is highlighted first).
Ich mache nach der Anstrengung eine Pause im Garten.
→ Slight emphasis on I make/take a break; the time phrase just gives extra information.

German allows flexible word order as long as:

the verb is in second position, and
the elements stay in a logical order.

Both versions are completely normal and correct.

Why is it eine Pause machen and not something like eine Pause nehmen?

Because in German, the natural idiom is eine Pause machen (to take a break).

eine Pause machen = the standard, idiomatic way to say to take a break / to have a break.
eine Pause nehmen is not wrong grammatically, but it sounds unusual and is rarely used. You might see it in some fixed expressions or as a conscious stylistic choice, but it's not the default.

So for ordinary speech and writing, you should use Pause machen.

What does im in im Garten stand for?

im is a contraction (short form) of in dem:

in = in
dem = dative singular article for masculine and neuter nouns

The noun Garten is masculine:

Nominative: der Garten
Dative: dem Garten

So:

in dem Garten → contracted to im Garten

German very often contracts:

in dem → im
an dem → am
bei dem → beim

Why is it im Garten (dative) and not in den Garten (accusative)?

Because im Garten describes a location (where), not a direction (where to).

German uses:

dative after in when talking about location / being somewhere
accusative after in when talking about movement into a place

Compare:

Ich mache eine Pause im Garten.
I take a break in the garden. (I am already there → location → dative: im = in dem)
Ich gehe in den Garten.
I go into the garden. (movement to there → direction → accusative: in den Garten)

What gender is Garten, and how does that affect the articles in this sentence?

Garten is masculine: der Garten.

Masculine singular definite articles:

Nominative: der Garten (subject)
Accusative: den Garten
Dative: dem Garten

In the sentence:

We have the preposition in used for location → dative
So we need dem Garten → in dem Garten → contracted to im Garten

That’s why you get im Garten, not in der Garten or in den Garten.

Could I leave out im Garten or move it somewhere else in the sentence?

Yes.

Leaving it out:
- Nach der Anstrengung mache ich eine Pause.
- This is perfectly fine; you just don’t say where you take the break.
Moving it: All of these are grammatical, with only small differences in emphasis:
- Nach der Anstrengung mache ich eine Pause im Garten.
- Nach der Anstrengung mache ich im Garten eine Pause.
- Ich mache nach der Anstrengung eine Pause im Garten.
- Ich mache im Garten nach der Anstrengung eine Pause. (possible, but slightly heavier style)

German allows different orders for adverbials (time, place, manner), but common, natural order is often:

Time – Manner – Place, e.g.
Nach der Anstrengung mache ich kurz eine Pause im Garten.

What is the nuance of Anstrengung here? Does it mean exercise, work, or just effort?

Anstrengung is a fairly general word meaning effort, exertion, strain. It focuses on the fact that something was physically or mentally demanding.

Depending on context, it can refer to:

physical exertion (sport, hard physical work)
mental effort (intense concentration, studying)
general strain or stress

Examples:

Nach der körperlichen Anstrengung … – after the physical exertion
Nach der geistigen Anstrengung … – after the mental effort

If you specifically mean exercise/sport, you might also see:

Nach dem Sport …
Nach dem Training …

But Anstrengung itself doesn’t specify exactly what you did; it just says it was strenuous.

Why is the present tense mache used, when in English we say I’m taking a break (progressive)?

German usually uses the simple present for what English often expresses with the present progressive.

So:

Ich mache eine Pause. can mean
- I’m taking a break (right now), or
- I take a break (regularly / habitually), depending on context.

If you really want to stress that it’s happening right now, you can add gerade:

Ich mache gerade eine Pause. – I’m currently taking a break.

But grammatically, the ordinary present mache already covers both uses, so no special progressive form is needed.