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Continuo a camminare anche se mi manca il fiato.

Continuo a camminare anche se mi manca il fiato.
I continue to walk even if I am out of breath.
From Lesson 128:Concession with indicative (anche se)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Continuo a camminare anche se mi manca il fiato.

Why is there an a between continuo and camminare?
In Italian, the verb continuare (to continue) requires the preposition a before a following infinitive verb. Whenever you want to say you continue doing or continue to do something, you must use continuare a plus the infinitive.
Why do we use the normal present tense (manca) after anche se here, instead of the subjunctive?
When anche se refers to a real, factual situation (meaning you really are out of breath right now), it is followed by the indicative mood, which is just the set of normal tenses you already know. You only need the subjunctive with anche se if you are talking about an unlikely or hypothetical situation, like saying even if I were out of breath.
How exactly does mi manca il fiato mean I am out of breath?
Literally, this phrase translates to the breath (il fiato) is missing (manca) to me (mi). The verb mancare works just like piacere. The thing that is missing is the grammatical subject of the sentence, which is why the verb manca matches the singular noun il fiato.
Can I use the verb mancare to say I miss a person, too?
Yes! Because the literal structure is to be missing to someone, you can say mi manchi to mean I miss you (literally: you are missing to me). In this sentence, it works exactly the same way, but the thing that is missing to you is your breath.

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