JFIFC    $ &%# #"(-90(*6+"#2D26;=@@@&0FKE>J9?@=C  =)#)==================================================" }!1AQa"q2#BR$3br %&'()*456789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz w!1AQaq"2B #3Rbr $4%&'()*56789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz ?TʴZEcbCcj|0t]V+ OC_[%,H;[kPN~5_hõB7@H#k12;nUf>52%4zO֙jWcp\ qOJfX[ {/=v;ƎosMgiZ˨,wQmmN HE%i0>P#=m$;=F}+@R't8\SKTvkT;ˑ?g@0yfQxq4I?v8V+#A#Ӣ*+(zTlqOcBY"yEﮅщqcЎ:o,2ghg'i%tycJ1=WH ΑrWA<g0Hq^A7\WEg{Aފ;\f8 SЁ}j0iLG%N#qW +Zy?A\'o|Fu>C>:"`O=bj# ?~?WuXE3#/2:>`Ey-J"}MO)%#ݤXZ8jYpM`j?2yq3q~< Z]Y |cԶuoo8$@&PHDħyk躚yt5 dq(qaG*Zz5z;`hԔ쑥9GV_U60%cЂ=-HyP@C~zߋP rrzү,,0mWw$q\ Aц~ކm0Սgx#W$ zoz_YgV?#54%9*F=ZzY+w!8$Wx96Jx3ƴH_)943RZrK?q9 %vGsמ1V~"'ޅ[OxB4$ܪ`7VK)e<|S4֛**fՒ$p?,5`e*S<èbN< \ω|O ?Qw֔}0̘1^_šjdIzxa"5z!kZ!-KmCPbZxV "\즼FQ^ Ć\י|?ݭhg=Q~s봿WkLJxtK|niFO(UGx \!Ai4M0[V`4(++UWXSJ?>+"NWӁ\T]&uR<qTs HOjܶ1,N)0 HztF+L[q'<̓1<Zf}b8! ^EA$ NO="nY&TS ƑǚCG$tƥ娲yלD_mF%h[$}q(dC 6 K!oU5'f&8B\E >bWv17 灁W˶?/iQ興Q+"]gzY%ǩ=y/Vr--c#\XZƫqݔ.\B[)RtUie|Sk0PyS*5V~R8V{mfN{u<_ow\gmĞ($錚/E6,$A;a(F=r\+<;k ֊i]iFI& cF29g}4 4<*pQH:)(Q6bOAIvF?5F k9b.I#cd꺍Ҽe@xMt4yl{lحGԚbY8%ߌ{NZ@9w5bI K* _, .$ԓ}xkcͳW?q[> eA6? ֞䳑qHWxeyQ1WJs#}jChgvs \4#-ji6Dϡl4m$ ԗ'Je#}N=j~B鄭Hb֓ÊK#kMw ,H?쎟KEjQy-XfRxR1g5z SN[UW_B Rǩ br(=@'jm. Xݲ=*) bǒEj9P\dc#81-fU,Wz ۜ8[-МAݏWEsZo{gfWd^*=ƝHhMF$qH@2A=ݦjncV?\32\+)5Y1SPbd}))0i RJoxwh1fff@8`Op ='_A a dSk*Z+4Z^]Gu~>Tَ:R,(I$sEDp?*cƊ*1n*RhjJ S R 1E P9h"sSd(HG)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 use a barbell pad.&nbsp; For most athletes, this also affects proper balance for heavy squatting.&nbsp; The vast majority of athletes will squat more and squat more effectively with more comfort when the bar is placed lower on the shoulders as shown in figure 9.&nbsp; Only a very, very small percentage of athletes will be able to squat&nbsp; more effectively with a high bar placement and this is because of structural differences in bone length and tendon-muscle attachments.</P> <P align=left>Some power lifters will place the bar extremely low on the shoulders.&nbsp; Sometimes the bar may be as much as four inches from the top of the shoulders, which is against the rules.&nbsp; For some lifters, this may give a slight anatomical advantage or the ad