Se avessi più tempo ogni mattina, farei yoga più a lungo.

If I had more time every morning, I would do yoga longer.

Breakdown of Se avessi più tempo ogni mattina, farei yoga più a lungo.

• io: I
• avere: to have
• ogni: every
• la mattina: the morning
• se: if
• il tempo: the time
• più: more
• fare: to do
• più a lungo: longer
• lo yoga: the yoga

Questions & Answers about Se avessi più tempo ogni mattina, farei yoga più a lungo.

Why is avessi used here instead of ho or avrei?

In Italian, when you express an unlikely or purely hypothetical condition in the present, you use the imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto) in the “se” clause (protasis). That’s why it’s Se avessi (If I had) rather than the indicative Se ho (If I have) or the conditional Se avrei (which is incorrect in this context).

Why is farei used instead of the future form farò?

The main clause of a hypothetical sentence in Italian uses the present conditional (condizionale presente) to show the result of an unreal condition. So farei yoga means “I would do yoga” rather than farò yoga, which means “I will do yoga” (a real future action).

What is the general structure of this kind of “if” (conditional) sentence in Italian?

This is a Type II conditional (present counterfactual). The pattern is:
• Protasis: Se + imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto)
• Apodosis: present conditional (condizionale presente)
So here: Se avessi + farei.

Why is there no subject pronoun (e.g. io) before farei?

In Italian, subject pronouns are often dropped because the verb ending already indicates the person. Farei clearly means “I would do,” so adding io is redundant.

Why is it più a lungo and not just più lungo?

A lungo is a fixed adverbial phrase meaning “for a long time.” To say “longer” you naturally say più a lungo (“more for a long time”). Saying più lungo would normally modify a noun (e.g. “a longer day”) rather than the duration of an action.

Can ogni mattina be placed elsewhere in the sentence?

Yes, you can move ogni mattina for emphasis. For example:
• Ogni mattina, se avessi più tempo farei yoga più a lungo.
• Se ogni mattina avessi più tempo, farei yoga più a lungo.
All are correct; the meaning stays the same, but you slightly shift the focus.

Why is there no article before yoga (e.g. lo yoga)?

When talking about sports or activities in Italian, you typically use fare + the activity without an article: fare yoga, fare sport, fare ginnastica. Using an article (lo yoga) would sound awkward in this construction.

Could I talk about a past hypothetical instead?

Yes. To discuss an unreal past condition, you’d use the past perfect subjunctive (congiuntivo trapassato) in the “se” clause and the past conditional (condizionale passato) in the main clause. For example:
Se avessi avuto più tempo ogni mattina, avrei fatto yoga più a lungo.
This means “If I had had more time every morning, I would have done yoga longer.”