This is a travel day for me today, so this is going to be short and there won't be an audio. But when one condition bothers several dozen readers, it starts to look like an epidemic from where I stand.
This has to do with an epidemic of sore knees and balance problems. Maybe it's all because of the parts of the world where it's winter. I've written about knees two weeks ago, but it bears more emphasis and repeating for those of you who may have missed it. For those of you with sore knees, listen up.
Even though I teach a limited turn swing with a maximum of 3/4 backswing, this little turn still needs to be done in balance and with limited stress.
The knees, even with a limited turn, should have a little external rotation, because the torso turns and the knees stay flexed. We achieve this dynamic balance, angle retention of the torso and knee flex, by having what I call a narrow stance (maximum: shoulder wide) with wide knees which are directly over the ankles. This way, ankle to knee is straight up and perpendicular to the ground.
We also exert a slight outward pressure of the knees, creating a little stretch in your upper and inner thighs. The reason for this outward pressure is to help resist moving the knees in the backswing, which is the key to keeping the knees and torso level and balanced.
The final checkpoint for the width of the knees directly over the ankles is that when we exert the outward pressure, your feet MUST remain flat. That is, the feet must not roll outward to the outside edge of your sole which would have your weight now getting outside your feet/base and thus not in balance.
And, with bad knees, this setup should be less stressful on your knees.
I can only surmise that balance problems with the wide knees is that you've got them too wide and had your weight roll to the outside of your feet. I have had students with knee replacement and one with both knees and hips replaced that couldn't really swing until we got the feet flaired 30 degrees or more and got him into the wide knees with outward pressure.
I hope this answers everybody's questions.
I am confident that with the wide knees over the ankles, with the weight centered on your feet, you will be in balance and have a powerful swing with little to no stress on your knees.
The Surge!