JFIFC    $ &%# #"(-90(*6+"#2D26;=@@@&0FKE>J9?@=C  =)#)==================================================p" }!1AQa"q2#BR$3br %&'()*456789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz w!1AQaq"2B #3Rbr $4%&'()*56789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz ? ]IB?Dg o0CP>򑞕T.'ʐPYO|!w-F[fȁִJ,6YG!ˡv\+;+{4kW7pxz;4*wUNjڄa&9w_o=JRhVבi[FStHMz-hlx'8϶*8A[)Ո"9ܓI\NPH5y9HF +xc@yO'E 팁']ǥ[$9 _jM&j5wU  @;q}sāxPi.eLnަ}6I4#8b9ٽM[[r:1 UVsE]t?)Fz*n$r>ds-<56eԿ;QƒW3_]M,ur9C|< gV%O]U%N K:.\C\O[{Æ.I$]^#!LrFnlc5]xpM#@n;zbeݝH)8~Y?ut-+5K󓞘95jT98ruoZwK[%X287uV>{gyq6Oӵ6PGsqm~W* $3?Ҷ,XyA>zھ7lQ7n=@Do.nȷ.u2O iXH<}[K)&|-el⹫Kً[0&_r']e7XGsiPq5&Ж*Z!s("+FxByڡW cy뚃q~+[ >)jʜt՛~Y `9sqi*g<{ 2T?NH$iBF4{\?nXjWa #+AFl3>ڹjS9- mxHrP҅e$_ZBYIb<|Zq$pC tds1&Kh'aӏTtkI>*aWvU/|H"[9M2s审"&i2g+\<]ddtZ̿exGeqƸyBYIfݑ_]Iz >zEm=Ml!t>(kf2 ;t=H?Zi՛_*^I Nw6,49@ o8(O\?:Y7"+xpx`vEcm[}?F$xTP@։k;LE#׮?:ԔsIۨegԍ"W{0JCƲFQU)Ž֎.$HLn,3: f\XiME)=Lw8TQ+f뚵6o$ةrNCJ:+rk>$+[4, 0;hwٲE g"@'*Wi,|F^уxV΃yu|.`xy=χ76*:.2PӺeV;ÖVίZ0Bϡ4oI"w#Hs˪t!}>"Ӻ,]A~.67/Ie},UWQKF8 ua-Q5-#u'߶+zE u:M]&e+ }rQc` "[׶;+0*}kI~ԎFrju-}4q?fs&9 Nd6!jje*so.#gf.'oA?UtԳ$Fx='FkJ[i%Y>l'9'*K]FjsX pgd^ V/]AnX_Dm(f8=+3}7Ed4HկI@e>oES+G%=GqJǣ~, o`s\x]H$YK2LnX2iZuZ;.AYR:V7b0Yu䄝#0GJJGi| *٣&tf8UƾD66mSN ϭuQj3ha0-@d}*k{OuӦwGgsuot[˨ sZCU!T|L)jEn_oee/tO'_~]ތysjŋNE&S?(p.>Oi"F n9}*%RB۹Q[Tl[ous]>H$Ej4~%B`rǹ5&w7J"Lgyȧn8rG9܎;Ry*2?:p` W1 @><;+Jx㧧4y ֋z~ORHN'oΊnxsp;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 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 m