JFIFC    $ &%# #"(-90(*6+"#2D26;=@@@&0FKE>J9?@=C  =)#)==================================================" }!1AQa"q2#BR$3br %&'()*456789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz w!1AQaq"2B #3Rbr $4%&'()*56789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz ?^Z STR*'ܐǥ@ܰ3S*"sQ*z~pib(cΑs@@#@>.>O k6UKti~2oaqJinictγ=FT{h}qZTwԊQOYiΤ ZYVT= &U6KOߩQ :Q߃E.J=yHb7dJ\0*!N39QK(R1TdO4T 3:8RF?]}% (dj^k|_jm}ˁs#ءjeވ pY37rsmW-NZq$,x#z b r7eo<$;'#;dsS爝9n1/"\u gON"ElF7wao }Q'0(HSRSׁҺ󞧚: An&:c1җhQm=:Ͷ\##ҴmPh/q6 3ңbIF'ҚqΘqQE&BQ@ icLH!JfNy `T7{TlAzHhp~TARSJc@px\GldZ>AzSYCU_BSJRWEA%sgTT>Hq-IW#ya3rFzV߇'Le-A\mrU[&qd1W=?Zg,QUH x#Y{3!K4lm5Jxr|V9rGRCHjnAR>ގ8 s)LsE&y:Q@ &GQNWLg$ }!χaG_?ʘ[ ?HQj`!|*!3@pM!Ĝc~Tn7$JjxQ]X\w^60X(w銇;lk]]Su(!f =/#em=u[m'ԚƇ.Qln;rޤָKcA"Zϖ-JIY$rN[vvVVqEtU]Q :[ MZVLuZKNC(Oa\kFIRY-s~2}Hf(%ϙ "V~"pk#ysnzE5fmM<+@R=)WUtȮcsI><`#!;S?*fMPGZ>6ϱM̛p5/r@ 511Hy/d7=3bT{?CEIG&I z SՁCLB/.rqxF@5osbera׾G,$%8[JVݰfD:o X7{},31cYfA[ZwH4ecv9$i4+P4~8]Jn=j `}=~m.QH΁eq0:SVQ8Ԅz+XdcW?*7X8# 'x2.;\Dj΁k&sHw<EHX =KX(X(0zdBly&jRONw䂭\Hc`c*fE(PFӥ0 pc=)/vzTߊ| n(45cNV82\皌1?8:r%#SYpTc1NO^Y~UUg!6u)Uk >rmwm~ac׼mzy1h丵?o>H͗mmr[Jrr}үdnVRFH Ҧl(aSW9O\pstM1[MvGnqAtΛn#XXFω⟺x]ƒq^4,r穯Z Ik4L$\}J\/RT<%t岐7)"MOȊ5d|+E8wNQq* 1>+[ ECI6#ucqrAV2@>j6$M"p1ޝzciGzP9JNp)7c; pMV{SxB2@Y:@To{Ä~EtoFvїĽl >8>F]` j҆*x5C&7ZΛiٚVW{fQ搰޺1S҃ #a~tNjL`㡦GLuh)ƮGҁM0q)8㿥PǂT<0 t֕\9qn4)sTk TaN❻W{s֜$hm9{"Kr#4Ƽ&I4hd+0RU5&&UF} aX\<1Ne餾JƘRI6YdgNFpA/,ѱ̄ ^޵PY̛œcyIh?x;h TA0OaVyU"iUxm֊@G;Q@ S^QE&O=O֊(ԏERYʢ?{F~E &nbsp; His knees are back and not extended past the toes.&nbsp; The athlete is at a perfect parallel position.&nbsp; His eyes are focused on a point which helps the lower back and upper body position.&nbsp; If you said one of the major problems in figure 2 and 3 was the head position, I wouldn't argue.&nbsp; Notice the difference in the chin position of figure 2 and figure 6.&nbsp; The athlete pictured is my son, Matt, while he was in the 8th grade.&nbsp; At this time, he weighed 125 and Parallel Squatted 225 pounds. </P> <P align=center><STRONG>PRE-SQUAT TECHNIQUE</STRONG></P> <P align=left><STRONG>A. Grip:</STRONG> There are two technique guidelines to consider when establishing a proper grip on the squat.&nbsp; First is thumb position.&nbsp; Should you have your thumb around the bar or in back of the bar as illustrated in figure 7?&nbsp; About 60% of power lifters have the thumb in back while 40% of power-lifters prefer their thumbs around the bar.&nbsp; Both styles are acceptable, but I prefer to coach my athletes with their thumbs in back of the bar.&nbsp; I feel this style is superior as it tends to prevent slippage of the bar.&nbsp; Sometimes athletes will have a problem in keeping the bar on the shoulders.&nbsp; Sometimes the bar will actually slip off the shoulders and slip down the back.&nbsp; The bar seems to be more secure with the thumbs in back; but if an athlete, after trying both styles, really prefers to have his thumbs around, I don't object.</P> <P align=left>The second grip guideline to consider is the width of the athlete's grip.&nbsp; This is another one of those secrets which can give you an edge.&nbsp; At clinics, I ask everyone to pretend they have a bar on their shoulders and to get a "very narrow grip".&nbsp; Then, I ask everyone to sit tall, spread their chest and lock-in their lower back.&nbsp; Next, they are asked to take a wide grip and lock-in their lower backs.&nbsp; Now I ask, "Which grip makes it easier to lock-in the lower back?"&nbsp; It's unanimous!&nbsp; It's the wide grip.&nbsp; Make sure you use the lines which are grooved into most Olympic bars about four inches from the inside collars.&nbsp; Use these lines as reference points.&nbsp; An athlete might put his first finger on each line with his thumb behind the bar.&nbsp; Now, he is properly balanced with a wide grip and has some assurance that the bar will remain secure on his shoulders.&nbsp; He is now ready to place the bar on the shoulders.&nbsp; </P> <P align=left><STRONG>B. Bar Position:</STRONG>&nbsp; A very common mistake for athletes who squat is placing the bar too high on the shoulders.&nbsp; In fact, many athletes place the bar right on the neck.&nbsp; This hurts, so they'll