Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): Intento tener un día equilibrado entre trabajo, descanso y estudio para cuidar mi bienestar. - I try to have a balanced day between work, rest, and study to take care of my well-being.

Tengo un día equilibrado = I have a balanced day (just describing a fact).
Intento tener un día equilibrado = I try to have a balanced day (shows effort, not guaranteed success).

Why is “tener” in the infinitive form here?

In Spanish, after many verbs of desire, intention, or attempt, you use an infinitive, similar to English “try to have”:

Intento tener un día equilibrado…
- intento = I try
- tener = to have

Other common patterns:

Quiero tener un día equilibrado. (I want to have…)
Necesito descansar. (I need to rest.)
Puedo estudiar. (I can study.)

So intento tener directly parallels English “I try to have”: finite verb (intento) + infinitive (tener).

What is the difference between “intento”, “trato de”, and “procuro”?

All three can mean “I try”, but they differ slightly in feel:

Intento tener un día equilibrado…
Neutral, very common, works in spoken and written Spanish.
Trato de tener un día equilibrado…
Also very common in Latin America, maybe a bit more conversational in some areas.
Remember: tratar de + infinitive (you must include de).
Procuro tener un día equilibrado…
Sounds a bit more formal or careful, like “I make an effort to / I take care to have…”

In most everyday contexts, intento and trato de are interchangeable in meaning. Procuro is less frequent in casual speech but perfectly correct.

Why is it “un día equilibrado” and not something like “un día equilibrio”?

Because Spanish needs an adjective to describe día, not a noun:

equilibrio = noun (balance)
- un equilibrio = a balance
equilibrado = adjective / past participle (balanced)
- un día equilibrado = a balanced day

So:

❌ un día equilibrio (two nouns together; incorrect in this meaning)
✅ un día equilibrado (noun + adjective; correct)

Grammatically: día is masculine singular, so the adjective agrees: equilibrado (not equilibrada).

Could you say “equilibrado día” instead of “día equilibrado”?

In normal, everyday Spanish, you usually put the adjective after the noun:

un día equilibrado (natural and standard)

Putting the adjective before the noun is possible but:

often sounds poetic, literary, or stylistic, or
can slightly change the nuance.

Un equilibrado día would sound unusual in daily speech and a bit “written” or stylized. For learners: stick with noun + adjective → un día equilibrado.

Why is there no article before “trabajo, descanso y estudio”?

In Spanish, when you refer to activities or concepts in a general, abstract way, you often omit the article:

entre trabajo, descanso y estudio
= between work, rest, and study (as general activities/categories)

Compare:

Trabajo es importante. = Work is important.
El trabajo es importante. = Work (in general) is important. (also OK)

Here, the idea is types of activity (working, resting, studying), so no article is needed and sounds very natural:

entre trabajo, descanso y estudio ✅
entre el trabajo, el descanso y el estudio is grammatically correct, but sounds a bit more specific or heavy.

What exactly does “bienestar” mean, and what kind of word is it?

Bienestar is a masculine noun meaning well‑being / wellness.

mi bienestar = my well‑being

It covers physical, mental, and emotional health in a broad sense. Similar to English wellness or overall well‑being.

Common uses:

cuidar mi bienestar = to take care of my well‑being
tu bienestar es importante para mí = your well‑being is important to me
programas de bienestar = wellness programs

Why is it “para cuidar mi bienestar” and not “por cuidar mi bienestar”?

Para + infinitive expresses purpose / goal:

…para cuidar mi bienestar.
= …in order to take care of my well‑being.

Por + infinitive is rare and has other, more specific uses; it does not express purpose in standard Spanish. For purpose, you almost always choose para:

Estudio para aprender. (I study in order to learn.)
Trabajo para ganar dinero. (I work in order to earn money.)

So here:

✅ para cuidar mi bienestar = with the goal of taking care of my well‑being
❌ por cuidar mi bienestar (not correct for this meaning).

Could you also say “para cuidar de mi bienestar”? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say:

Intento tener un día equilibrado… para cuidar de mi bienestar.

Cuidar works with or without “de”, depending on the direct object:

cuidar + direct object (no “de”):
- cuidar mi bienestar
- cuidar mi salud
- cuidar a mis hijos (with a for people)
cuidar de + noun:
- cuidar de mi bienestar
- cuidar de mi salud
- cuidar de mí (to take care of me)

In this sentence, both cuidar mi bienestar and cuidar de mi bienestar are correct.
Without “de” is a bit more direct and common; with “de” can feel slightly more formal or emphatic in some contexts, but the meaning here is essentially the same.

How would the meaning change if you used “para mi bienestar” instead of “para cuidar mi bienestar”?

Compare:

para cuidar mi bienestar
= in order to take care of my well‑being
(emphasizes the action of caring for it)
para mi bienestar
= for my well‑being
(more general; it’s beneficial for me, but doesn’t highlight the action)

So:

Intento tener un día equilibrado… para cuidar mi bienestar.
= I’m actively trying to protect/maintain my well‑being.
Intento tener un día equilibrado… para mi bienestar.
= The balanced day is good for my well‑being (a bit more abstract / less action‑focused).

Any tips on pronunciation for “Intento tener un día equilibrado entre trabajo, descanso y estudio para cuidar mi bienestar”?

Key points:

Intento → in‑TEN‑to (stress on TEN).
tener → te‑NER (stress on NER).
día → DÍ‑a (two syllables; stress on DÍ because of the accent).
equilibrado → e‑qui‑li‑BRA‑do (stress on BRA).
entre → EN‑tre (stress on EN).
trabajo → tra‑BA‑jo (stress on BA; j like a harsh h).
descanso → des‑CAN‑so (stress on CAN).
estudio → es‑TU‑dio (stress on TU; es and tu are separate syllables).
cuidar → cui‑DAR (stress on DAR; cui sounds like “kwee” for many English speakers).
bienestar → bie‑nes‑TAR (stress on TAR; bie like “bye‑eh” blended).

All vowels are pure (no diphthong changes like English), and every letter is pronounced except the silent u in “que / qui / gue / gui”, which doesn’t appear here.