yes, it's a pattern after that phrase "antes de" you have to use the infinitive or you can use the preterit using this pattern "Antes de que" exemples: Antes de aprender español, quería hablar Japones / Antes de que aprendiera español, quería aprender japones. I hope That helped you. Saludos!

In Spanish with express This idea using an infinitive after the adverb of time "antes" and the preposition "de".While in english you say "before starting" an adverb and a verb in gerund.

Hi, David. It is neither; it is just the way we say in Spanish: "before learing Spanish..." you will find sentences such as "antes de conocerla, ya la quería", for example. Or: "antes de que comenzara este viaje, no pensaba en esto". The point being that there is no rule regarding "antes de" + "infinitive". Best,