Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Beberapa murid mengikuti latihan kebugaran intensif setiap Sabtu pagi. - Several students attend intensive fitness training every Saturday morning.

Because beberapa already shows plurality, murid (student) stays in its basic form; Indonesian usually does not add an extra plural marker when words like beberapa, banyak (many), sedikit (a few) already show that it’s plural.

So:

beberapa murid = several students
murid-murid = students (plural, more general)
beberapa murid-murid is usually avoided because it sounds redundant.

Why is there no plural like murid-murid? How do we know it’s “students” and not “student”?

Indonesian normally does not require plural marking the way English does. Context and words like beberapa carry the plural meaning.

Here, beberapa already means several, so we automatically know murid is plural in meaning.

You could say Beberapa murid-murid grammatically, but it sounds wordy and unnatural. Native speakers will almost always just say beberapa murid.

What is the nuance of murid? Could I use siswa or pelajar instead?

All three mean “student,” but with slightly different usual contexts:

murid – often for school students (especially primary/secondary). Quite neutral and common.
siswa – also school students (SD, SMP, SMA). Often used in formal/official/educational contexts.
pelajar – more general “learner/student,” often used in formal language, and can imply secondary school level or “a person who studies.”

In this sentence, you could say:

Beberapa murid mengikuti latihan...
Beberapa siswa mengikuti latihan...

Both sound natural. Pelajar would also be understood, but murid or siswa are more typical for a school context.

What does mengikuti mean here? Why not just ikut or something like hadir?

Mengikuti literally comes from ikut (to join, follow) with the prefix me-, and it often means:

to follow
to take part in
to attend (a course, training, event)

In this sentence, mengikuti is best translated as to attend / to take part in:

Beberapa murid mengikuti latihan kebugaran intensif...
→ Several students attend / take part in intensive fitness training...

You could say:

Beberapa murid ikut latihan kebugaran... – more casual, slightly shorter.
hadir means “to be present (at an event)” and is usually for meetings, ceremonies, class attendance, etc.
mengikuti latihan sounds more like they are participating in an organized training program, not just being present.

What exactly is latihan kebugaran? Is it like “exercise,” “practice,” or “training”?

latihan = training, practice, exercise session
kebugaran = fitness (from bugar = fit, fresh, in good shape)

So latihan kebugaran is best understood as fitness training or fitness exercise sessions—usually structured physical activities (maybe a class, program, or routine) aimed at improving physical fitness.

It’s more specific than just olahraga (sports/exercise).

olahraga = sports / exercise in general
latihan kebugaran = a particular training activity/program focused on fitness.

Why is the adjective intensif placed after latihan kebugaran? Can it go before, like in English?

In Indonesian, adjectives usually come after the noun they describe. So:

latihan kebugaran intensif
- latihan (training)
- kebugaran (fitness) – describes the type of training
- intensif (intensive) – describes how the training is

Putting it into English order, it’s like saying intensive fitness training, but in Indonesian the order is:
noun + modifier + adjective
→ latihan + kebugaran + intensif

You generally do not say intensif latihan kebugaran; that sounds unnatural.

How is tense expressed here? How do we know it’s “attend every Saturday morning” and not past or future?

Indonesian verbs usually do not change form for tense (no -ed, -s, -will, etc.). Tense and aspect are shown by:

context
time words (yesterday, tomorrow, every day, etc.)

Here, setiap Sabtu pagi (every Saturday morning) clearly shows a habitual action—something that happens regularly. By default, that’s understood as present habitual:

“Several students attend intensive fitness training every Saturday morning.”

The same sentence could describe past or future habits if the context makes that clear, but by itself it’s most naturally present habit. If you wanted to emphasize future or past, you’d add other words:

Mulai bulan depan, beberapa murid akan mengikuti latihan...
Dulu, beberapa murid mengikuti latihan...

What does setiap Sabtu pagi literally mean? Why is the time phrase in that order?

setiap = every
Sabtu = Saturday
pagi = morning

So setiap Sabtu pagi literally: every Saturday morning.

The order is normally:

setiap
- day
  - time-of-day
    - setiap Senin siang (every Monday at noon)
    - setiap Jumat malam (every Friday night)

You wouldn’t usually say setiap pagi Sabtu; that feels off.
You can say setiap hari Sabtu pagi, but the hari (day) is optional and often dropped: setiap Sabtu pagi is more natural and shorter.

Could I add pada before setiap Sabtu pagi? Is pada necessary?

You could say:

Beberapa murid mengikuti latihan kebugaran intensif pada setiap Sabtu pagi.

But in everyday Indonesian, pada is often omitted before time expressions, especially with setiap. Both are grammatically correct; the version without pada is more natural and less formal:

Without pada: neutral, common in speech and writing
With pada: more formal-sounding, often in written or official contexts

So the original sentence is perfectly normal and idiomatic.

Why is Sabtu capitalized but pagi is not?

In Indonesian spelling rules:

Names of days and months are capitalized:
- Senin, Selasa, Rabu, Kamis, Jumat, Sabtu, Minggu
General time-of-day words are not capitalized:
- pagi (morning), siang (midday), sore (late afternoon), malam (night)

So:

Sabtu → capitalized (proper noun: the name of a day)
pagi → lowercase (common noun: general time of day)

That’s why we write setiap Sabtu pagi, not setiap sabtu Pagi.

Is this sentence formal or informal? In what context would it be natural?

The sentence is in neutral–slightly formal standard Indonesian.

It’s not slangy or casual
It’s not extremely formal or bureaucratic either

It would sound natural in:

A school report:
- Beberapa murid mengikuti latihan kebugaran intensif setiap Sabtu pagi.
An announcement to parents
A written description of school activities

In casual spoken Indonesian, people might shorten or rearrange slightly, for example:

Beberapa murid ikut latihan kebugaran intensif tiap Sabtu pagi.
- ikut instead of mengikuti
- tiap instead of setiap

But the meaning stays the same.