Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): Cuando corro por la mañana, consumo muchas calorías. - When I run in the morning, I consume many calories.

por la mañana
- Very common in both Spain and Latin America.
- Means “in the morning / during the morning” (general time of day).
- Fits perfectly for habitual actions:
  - Corro por la mañana. – I run in the mornings.
en la mañana
- Common in many parts of Latin America (e.g., Mexico, Central America, parts of the Andes).
- Often interchangeable with por la mañana in those regions:
  - Corro en la mañana. – Also “I run in the morning.”
de la mañana
- Used mainly with clock times:
  - Corro a las 7 de la mañana. – I run at 7 in the morning.
- Not normally used alone to mean just “in the morning”.

So your sentence with por la mañana is neutral and correct in Latin American Spanish. Depending on region, en la mañana could sound equally natural, but por la mañana is always safe.

Why do we need la in por la mañana?

Parts of the day in Spanish usually take the definite article in generic expressions:

por la mañana – in the morning
por la tarde – in the afternoon
por la noche – at night

So the natural pattern is:

✅ Corro por la mañana.
❌ Corro por mañana. (incorrect)

You don’t use the article when another determiner is there, like esta:

Esta mañana corrí. – I ran this morning.
Mañana por la mañana, corro. – Tomorrow morning I run.
(Here mañana = tomorrow; la mañana = the morning.)

Why is it simple present corro instead of something like estoy corriendo?

Spanish uses the simple present a lot more than English, especially for:

Habits and routines:
- Corro todos los días. – I run every day.
- Cuando corro por la mañana, consumo muchas calorías.

In English you might say either:

“When I run in the morning…” (simple present), or
“When I’m running in the morning…” (present continuous).

In Spanish, the continuous estoy corriendo is reserved for actions that are happening right now or in progress around the current time:

Ahora mismo estoy corriendo. – I’m running right now.

For general, repeated actions, corro is the normal form.

Why is it cuando corro and not cuando corra (subjunctive)?

With cuando, the choice between indicative and subjunctive signals whether we’re talking about:

a habit / usual fact → indicative
a future, not-yet-realized event → subjunctive

Habitual or general fact (your sentence)
- Cuando corro por la mañana, consumo muchas calorías.
  “When(ever) I run in the morning, I burn a lot of calories.”
  → It’s something you usually do, a repeated fact → indicative (corro).
Future, not yet done
- Cuando corra mañana por la mañana, consumiré muchas calorías.
  “When I run tomorrow morning, I will burn many calories.”
  → The running hasn’t happened yet → subjunctive (corra).

So corro is correct here because you’re describing a regular routine, not a specific future event.

Can I move the clause and say Consumo muchas calorías cuando corro por la mañana?

Yes, that sentence is just as correct and natural.

Meaning: essentially the same.
Difference: tiny nuance in emphasis:

Cuando corro por la mañana, consumo muchas calorías.
Slightly more focus on the condition/time (“When I run in the morning…”).
Consumo muchas calorías cuando corro por la mañana.
Slightly more focus on the result (“I burn a lot of calories when I run in the morning.”).

Grammatically both are fine, and both sound natural in Latin American Spanish.

Is there any difference if por la mañana is closer to corro or to consumo?

In your sentence:

Cuando corro por la mañana, consumo muchas calorías.

por la mañana clearly modifies corro: it tells us when you run.

If you try to attach it to consumo, the meaning starts to feel different or awkward:

Cuando corro, por la mañana consumo muchas calorías.
→ Sounds like: I run (at some time), and in the mornings (maybe at a different time) I consume many calories. Confusing.

So the most natural is to keep por la mañana next to the verb it describes:

Cuando corro por la mañana, consumo muchas calorías.
Consumo muchas calorías cuando corro por la mañana.

In both of these, the time phrase clearly belongs to corro.

Why is there no yo before corro?

Spanish is a “pro‑drop” language: subject pronouns are usually omitted because verb endings already show who the subject is.

corro → must be yo (I), because only yo uses that form.
corres → tú
corre → él / ella / usted
etc.

So both are grammatically correct:

Yo corro por la mañana.
Corro por la mañana.

But the version without yo is more neutral and typical.
If you do say yo, you usually want emphasis or contrast:

Yo corro por la mañana, pero ella corre por la noche.
I run in the morning, but she runs at night.

Why is it muchas calorías and not muchos calorías?

In Spanish, adjectives must agree in gender and number with the noun.

caloría is feminine singular
- una caloría
calorías is feminine plural
- muchas calorías

So:

✅ mucha caloría (fem. sing.)
✅ muchas calorías (fem. pl.)
❌ muchos calorías (wrong gender)
❌ mucho calorías (wrong gender and number)

The article is not needed here because it’s an indefinite plural (“many calories” rather than “the many calories”):

Consumo muchas calorías. – I burn/use many calories.
Consumo las calorías. – I consume the calories (specific ones).

Is consumir calorías really natural, or should it be quemar calorías or gastar calorías?

All three verbs are used, but with slightly different flavors:

consumir calorías
- Common in nutrition / biology contexts: your body uses up energy.
- Neutral, a bit more technical.
- Cuando el cuerpo está en reposo, consume calorías.
quemar calorías
- Very common in exercise / fitness talk.
- Literally “to burn calories,” same metaphor as in English.
- Cuando corro por la mañana, quemo muchas calorías.
gastar calorías
- Also used, similar to “spend calories/energy.”
- Slightly more colloquial or informal in some regions.
- Haciendo ejercicio gastas más calorías.

So your sentence with consumo muchas calorías is correct. If you’re specifically talking in a sporty/gym context, quemo muchas calorías is probably the most idiomatic everyday choice.

Could I say Al correr por la mañana, consumo muchas calorías instead of Cuando corro por la mañana…?

Yes. al + infinitive is a common structure, and it often corresponds to “when” or “on/while doing X”:

Al correr por la mañana, consumo muchas calorías.
≈ “When I run in the morning, I burn many calories.”
≈ “By running in the morning, I burn many calories.”

Nuance:

Cuando corro… feels completely neutral and very common in speech.
Al correr… can sound a little more formal or written, and sometimes highlights the idea of means/cause (“by running”) more than simple time.

Both are grammatically correct and natural.

What do the accent marks in mañana and calorías change, and how are these words pronounced?

mañana

The ñ is a different letter from n; it’s pronounced like the ny in canyon.
Without the tilde, manana would be mispronounced and is not a valid Spanish word.
mañana has two common meanings:
- “morning” → por la mañana – in the morning
- “tomorrow” → mañana corro – I’ll run tomorrow
In your sentence, mañana clearly means “morning” because of por la.

Pronunciation: [ma‑'ɲa‑na] (stress on the second syllable: ma‑ÑA‑na).

calorías

The acute accent on í marks the stressed syllable:
- ca‑lo‑'rí‑as
Without the accent, stress would fall on lo (ca‑'lo‑rias), which would be wrong.

So you say: ca‑lo‑RÍ‑as, with clear stress on rí.