Antes de começar o exercício físico, eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado.

Before starting physical exercise, I stretch each muscle carefully.

Breakdown of Antes de começar o exercício físico, eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado.

• eu: I
• de: of
• começar: to start
• antes: before
• com cuidado: carefully
• cada: each
• o exercício: the exercise
• físico: physical
• alongar: to stretch
• o músculo: the muscle

Questions & Answers about Antes de começar o exercício físico, eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado.

Why do we say antes de começar and not antes começar?

In Portuguese, antes almost always needs the preposition de before a verb in the infinitive.

• Correct: antes de começar
• Incorrect: antes começar

Structure:

• antes de + infinitive = before doing X
  
  • antes de comer – before eating
  • antes de sair – before leaving

Without de, the sentence sounds wrong to a native speaker. So the rule you want to remember is: antes de + verb (infinitive).

In English we say before I start the exercise. Why does Portuguese use antes de começar o exercício físico instead of something like antes de eu começar o exercício físico?

Portuguese often uses an infinitive clause where English uses a finite clause with a subject (I, you, he etc.).

• Antes de começar o exercício físico literally: Before starting the physical exercise
  → In context, the subject “I” is clear from the main clause eu alongo..., so it doesn’t need to be repeated.

You can say:

• Antes de eu começar o exercício físico, eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado.

This is grammatically correct but a bit heavier and less natural in everyday European Portuguese. The version with just the infinitive (antes de começar) is more common and feels smoother.

Why is it começar o exercício físico and not começar a exercício físico or começar de exercício físico?

With começar, you have two main patterns:

1. começar + direct object (noun)

   • começar o exercício – to start the exercise
   • começar o trabalho – to start the work

2. começar a + infinitive

   • começar a correr – to start running
   • começar a estudar – to start studying

So in your sentence:

• começar o exercício físico: exercício físico is a noun; it’s the direct object of começar.
• You do not use a or de before a direct object here.

Compare:

• Antes de começar o exercício físico – Before starting the physical exercise
• Antes de começar a fazer exercício físico – Before starting to do physical exercise

Both are correct; they just use different structures.

Why is there an o in o exercício físico? Could I say just Antes de começar exercício físico?

In European Portuguese, you normally use the definite article (o, a, os, as) much more than in English.

Here:

• o exercício físico = the physical exercise (a specific, known activity: your workout, training session, etc.)

Saying Antes de começar exercício físico without o sounds incomplete or foreign.
More natural options in European Portuguese:

• Antes de começar o exercício físico, eu alongo…
• Antes de começar o exercício, eu alongo… (still fine; físico is optional if the context is clear)

What is the difference between exercício and exercício físico?

Exercício by itself is more general; it can mean:

• a school exercise (in a book, in class)
• a practical exercise or task
• physical exercise, depending on context

Exercício físico is specifically physical exercise / workout.

In a sports or gym context, many people will simply say exercício because the context makes it clear. But:

• exercício físico leaves no doubt that you mean physical exercise, not homework or a textbook exercise.

What exactly does alongo mean? Is it the same as estico?

Alongar means to stretch (out), to lengthen. In the context of the body, it means to stretch (muscles) as part of a warm-up or cool-down.

• alongar os músculos – to stretch the muscles
• alongo cada músculo – I stretch each muscle

Esticar also means to stretch, but it’s broader and often used for objects:

• esticar uma corda – to stretch a rope
• esticar as pernas – to stretch your legs (after sitting)

For warm-up / workout language in European Portuguese:

• alongar (or fazer alongamentos) is the standard term for stretching as an exercise.

Should it be eu alongo or eu alongo-me? Isn’t alongar-se reflexive?

Both exist, but they are used slightly differently.

1. alongar (non‑reflexive, with an object)

   • Eu alongo cada músculo. – I stretch each muscle.
     The focus is on the specific muscles as objects.

2. alongar-se (reflexive)

   • Eu alongo-me antes do treino. – I stretch (myself) before training.

In European Portuguese:

• At the gym, you often hear both: alongar os músculos and alongar-me.
• Your sentence eu alongo cada músculo is perfectly natural because the object (cada músculo) is explicit.

So:

• Eu alongo cada músculo – focusing on each muscle.
• Eu alongo-me – a bit more general: I stretch.

Why do we say cada músculo instead of todos os músculos? Is there a difference?

Yes, there is a nuance:

• cada músculo = each muscle, one by one
  → It suggests a careful, individual attention to every single muscle.

• todos os músculos = all the muscles
  → It focuses on the group as a whole, not on the idea of one by one.

In your sentence:

• eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado
  → gives the idea of systematically going through the muscles individually, carefully stretching them.

Why com cuidado and not cuidadosamente? Are both correct?

Both are grammatically correct, but com cuidado is more natural and common in everyday speech.

• com cuidado = carefully (literally “with care”)
• cuidadosamente = carefully (adverb form)

European Portuguese speakers tend to prefer com + noun instead of long -mente adverbs in casual language:

• falar com calma (rather than calmamente) – speak calmly
• tratar alguém com respeito – treat someone with respect

So:

• eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado sounds very natural.
• eu alongo cada músculo cuidadosamente is correct but feels a bit more formal or written.

Can I drop the eu and just say Antes de começar o exercício físico, alongo cada músculo com cuidado?

Yes, and that is very natural in Portuguese.

Subject pronouns (eu, tu, ele…) are often omitted because the verb ending already shows the subject:

• alongo = I stretch
• alonga = he/she/you (formal) stretch(es)

So you can say:

• Antes de começar o exercício físico, alongo cada músculo com cuidado.

This sounds completely normal in European Portuguese and is actually more typical than repeating eu all the time.

Is the word order eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado fixed, or can I move com cuidado?

You can move com cuidado, with small changes in emphasis. These are all acceptable:

• Eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado.
• Eu alongo, com cuidado, cada músculo. (more written / expressive)
• Eu, com cuidado, alongo cada músculo. (marked, more literary or emphatic)

Most natural and neutral:

• Eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado.
• Or without eu: Alongo cada músculo com cuidado.

Why is there a comma before eu alongo? Is it required?

Yes, the comma is standard here.

Structure:

• Antes de começar o exercício físico – subordinate clause of time (before starting the exercise...)
• eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado – main clause

In European Portuguese, when a subordinate clause (introduced by antes de, quando, se, etc.) comes before the main clause, you normally separate them with a comma:

• Quando chego a casa, descanso. – When I get home, I rest.
• Se chover, ficamos em casa. – If it rains, we stay at home.
• Antes de começar o exercício físico, eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado.

If you invert the order, the comma usually disappears:

• Eu alongo cada músculo com cuidado antes de começar o exercício físico.