Breakdown of Инструктор рекомендует закрывать глаза при выполнении этой позы.
этот
this [f: эта, n: это]
глаз
eye
закрывать
to close (imperfective)
рекомендовать
to recommend
Questions & Answers about Инструктор рекомендует закрывать глаза при выполнении этой позы.
Why do we use при выполнении instead of a clause like когда вы выполняете?
This is a prime example of syntactic compression. By using the preposition при (during/at the time of) followed by the prepositional case of the verbal noun выполнение (performing/performance), the sentence becomes more concise and professional. This structure is extremely common in Russian instructions, manuals, and formal advice.
Why is этой позы in the genitive case here?
When you replace a verb with a verbal noun, its direct object must change case. With a normal verb, you would use the accusative case: выполнять эту позу (to perform this pose). However, after a noun like выполнение, the object turns into a modifier in the genitive case: выполнение этой позы (literally, the performance of this pose).
Why is the imperfective verb закрывать used here rather than the perfective закрыть?
Verbs of advising and recommending, like рекомендовать and советовать, typically take an imperfective infinitive when describing a general rule or a repeated action. Since the instructor is stating a general principle for every time you do this pose, the imperfective закрывать is required.
What is the specific role of the preposition при in nominalization?