Going strapless: bare your shoulders with confidence, thanks to fitness icon Cory Everson's delt-defining routine

Muscle & Fitness/Hers, August, 2003 by Michael Berg

"It looks great," he offers as his girlfriend, now in a simple black strapless dress, emerges from the dressing room to examine herself in the full-length mirror.

She dismisses his half-hearted comment with "the look"--the one letting him know that she's perfectly aware he'd compliment a muu muu if it meant escaping another minute in the pity chair. (And yes, you know the chair--the one strategically placed just outside the dressing room for men to sink dejectedly into as they wait for an end to the madness.)

"No, this dress is all wrong. Look at my shoulders. They're so narrow and puny!" And she retreats back from whence she came before he can utter a word of protest. Somewhere, mockingly, a football game enters the fourth quarter, while his couch and television sit sadly alone at home. Sigh.

Okay, as terrible and insulting as that story may sound, unlike many things that come out of a man's mouth, it has a ring of truth to it. Admit it--you've been that woman, witnessing the will to live slowly drain from your husband's or boyfriend's body as you went through more costume changes than a "Dreamgirls" revival.

Two things--first, you probably look way better in that dress than you give yourself credit for. And second, if you want to strengthen your shoulders, you could try this routine, courtesy of renowned fitness personality Cory Everson. It's designed to add muscle shape just where you need it, so that soon enough, you'll be satisfied with how you look in your own little black number. Promise.

1 exercise-ball overhead dumbbell press

Cory is a huge proponent of integrating the exercise ball into your training. "Doing presses on the ball takes so much core muscle," she says. "Oh man, it's like an abdominal, butt, thigh and shoulder workout all in one."

In this version. Cory performs 10 regular reps, where she presses both weights overhead simultaneously and then finishes the set with 10 alternating reps that call for additional strength and balance.

start> Sit on a ball that's the right size for your height (your knees should form a 90-degree angle with your feet on the floor in the sitting position), and hold a dumbbell in each hand at shoulder level.

movement> Press both dumbbells overhead at a slow, even cadence, allowing them to arc naturally toward each other. Stop when your elbows are almost straight and the dumbbells are close to touching at the top, then lower the weights back to shoulder level. After 10 reps, do alternating reps for another 10-count--lift one dumbbell as you lower the other.

tip> Choose lighter dumbbells than you'd use for regular seated presses, especially if you're new to ball work.

2 pike push-up (off bench)

This unique move was introduced to Cory by NASM-certified personal trainer Jeff Page. "This is a wild exercise," she says. "I was sore for days, in a good way. I love it!" This exercise has multiple levels of difficulty, from keeping your legs bent (the easiest), to legs straight (shown here), to another variation where you lift one leg off the bench, and finally to handstand push-ups where your body is aligned against a wall.

tip> "The goal of this exercise is not muscle failure," Cory warns. "Ten repetitions is a guideline. The second you start to lose control and break form, stop--this isn't the type of exercise where you should push yourself further."

3 reverse cable crossover

This cable isolation movement places your aim squarely on the rear delts, an often-underdeveloped area. As the back tends to take over on rear-delt moves, you'll want to select light weights and keep your mind on the task at hand--feel the back of your shoulders flex and lengthen on each rep.

start> Stand in the center of a high cable pulley apparatus, and grasp a pulley handle in each hand (the left handle in your right hand and vice versa) so your hands cross in front of you at about shoulder height.

movement> Keeping your elbows just slightly bent throughout, squeeze your rear delts to pull your arms out and back until your body forms a lowercase "t," then return to the start position.

tip> Your elbows should point straight back as you pull the cables across your body. Also, maintain proper posture and spinal alignment from your head to your tailbone.

4 multi-angle dumbbell raise

This combo of the lateral and front raise saves time while taxing your front and side deltoid muscles. "Women don't usually have a ton of shoulder strength to do complete sets of one or the other, but when you alternate through a set, you can get your reps without fading," Cory says. "In my experience. I can do presses until I'm blue in the face, but it's these raises that finish and define the delts."

start> Stand upright, eyes forward, dumbbell in each hand, lower back in its natural arch.

movement> Raise both dumbbells to the front, palms facing down. Lower them back to the start, then raise them both to the side (not pictured) and back down. On the third rep, raise your left hand to the side and your right hand to the front, then return to the start. Finally, raise your right hand to the side and your left to the front. Repeat that pattern 2-3 times to complete a full set.