JFIFC    $ &%# #"(-90(*6+"#2D26;=@@@&0FKE>J9?@=C  =)#)==================================================h" }!1AQa"q2#BR$3br %&'()*456789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz w!1AQaq"2B #3Rbr $4%&'()*56789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz ?댋9ׅW/y#"jcQxYм7O9SM]wHx3@APiQ5$8Jel~P 9>, TDI*4cMZP֚g6=۳#5ms3/4ETs*={P?1,C+ ,^ c+E|Az$ٜ` V[#ʹy2ݎs[Q 2цOs K5UW Q⼇1IｒL [wMi4%-ͩh+u0.XmXFO<*0נ=iNnPǁ:=vrI%!*z>RV%lO)hu H3gϡ_YV+%}r@Qg<۵d9[]ˍ;Ȣ)B鋫OS ":H+&̫\w?ր5nn5GgZN<MO#䐌|ay#b*Oԋ}}@lw%|U?h?%d{.10GkV,ϧ5Gn) nf#3瑸W]>lf),Q(xހ;=6[X|'m@+ u23]p9yU5MjM]2Wy=W=k|o5+{*m"@1ɎIa ,/.ln⹎C(="K)W-nFA[~{~c+]͌p9W#xVv) GZҮ,kE-P-'':&a-bn?_ڽ9cR9 ?^>/{Og!6]4haps!|1q{uYm7F/]m-fT"=N1Tq>x6KI$d}.-zV少9H/p[:Tmg=TKh6dL@?ʨ{K\-,O^b=ib1<=?_z˚%1 !Y89j=^I{E,>V9PbṏH_fR֢6}tP7)^%onTkśT), cf&=*dHO.X2#7XRJA^/ya'ny3?Aנ!9nHFy`+i>YiW 4Q$d<@5/@_ŭ3Fc>޻\FqtϪ^K{y|G 8ym?5nXz&xeO)r ѵ9$T!Aݸ8j迶u/|͍i.d` N;u >xar_SakHm+d_5Ҁ?d+b͜u&73V7(ԯ՚x̤g ފ f)UY\{J(Яk€ =z?mqQ+87Rn'S^M%Ye X}hpv-,X}%ahĴAj8,o/4gѣ4 Zxf(eM .IOz퉮7;ãqg&"rJ#CõM,K P1V Qn$rv%p~T}n5ƸFK@n\lIA+A_sL )g11/ 0˨kb'rq ϴ ߴg`sZΓ\tsMԱeL(Z}njo)p= |Hҭ'kǁK3@{iz6S_c>fAel1(}:T*|G SjǼ'4U'u퇁Qx'$:u]H> ) cW0TFv?<%[ƭUWDdy} (zG?d;wb~xM wѶ7 qvqIC<*۶һW"F腌`#Ox֮jm.wJbx xBÖΛ^ $'-XͧZm2I8K4)J\и @ &'w<9O3ҪPW*G`͆d4b 8;7h5y`iUN1O]P\Q0OrO>!@$xE;vrƲC?`W wPH/8#b(KiT`s~LV?Š( )G/8QE0x|* EZi-9ɏNC%6p9(PϯFFɓx;1%PSbՖ <P>Figure 6 shows the perfect low power position.&nbsp; The athlete has his feet&nbsp;close to the Squatting Stand. His feet and heels are firmly planted on the floor.&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