If you ask anyone on the gym floor how to grow a bigger set of shoulders, you’ll probably find that no two answers are the same. In between front raises, upright rows, machine presses and cable raises, shoulder day can quickly become a long list of exercises.

However, fitness creator and coach Eric Evans, also known on social media as Average to Jacked, thinks most lifters are overcomplicating things. He says that if he had to start from scratch after over a decade of training, he’d strip his shoulder workouts back to just two simple moves.

‘If I had to start over today, I’d build my shoulders with just two movements: a lateral raise and also a rear delt fly,’ he explains.

According to Evans, the reason for this isn’t because those exact exercises are magic, but because they work the correct movement pattern for the muscle.

‘Your body doesn’t know the name of the exercise you’re doing,’ he argues. ‘It really only knows the fundamental movement pattern you’re asking it to perform and also the amount of tension you’re placing on the muscle.’

So, you don’t have to perform cable lateral raises if your gym only has dumbbells, or use a reverse pec deck if you’d rather do bent-over rear delt flyes. As long as you’re training the same movement pattern and progressing the move with intensity or volume, you’ll achieve a similar result.

According to the coach, lateral raises deserve a place in your programme because they primarily target the side delts, helping create broader-looking shoulders and a more pronounced ‘V-taper’. Rear delt flyes train the back of the shoulders to create a rounder, more 3D physique.

‘I’m not including anything for the front delts, and that’s intentional,’ he says. ‘Your front delts are already heavily involved every time you do pressing exercises for your chest.’

For most lifters already bench pressing, incline pressing or overhead pressing regularly, he argues the side and rear delts are more likely to be the limiting factor.

‘I don’t think the front delts are what’s holding their shoulders back. I think it’s the side and rear delts,’ he adds.

He recommends focusing on controlling every rep, and avoiding using momentum to swing the weight. He also suggests working in the 8-15 rep range, adding reps until you reach the top of the range before increasing the load and repeating the process – also known as progressive overload.

‘You definitely don’t need to hit your shoulders from 10 different angles,’ he says. ‘You just need to consistently train these two movement patterns, push them hard and then gradually get stronger over time.’

The Bottom Line

Research suggests muscle growth is driven more by sufficient training volume, progressive overload and proximity to failure than by constantly changing exercises and programme hopping. In fact, that could hinder it. So if your shoulder workouts have become jam-packed with unnecessary variations, simplifying your approach may be exactly what helps you make more consistent progress in the long term.

If there’s one thing Kori Sampson knows, it’s how to optimise your body composition for performance. To tap into his knowledge as an elite athlete and coach, we asked him to create a 4-week plan to help you move faster, recover quicker and keep pushing when the fatigue sets in – all while improving your muscle-to-fat ratio.

Ready to build muscle, burn fat and come out the other side looking, feeling and performing better? Click here to get 14 days of free access to the plan via the Men’s Health app.

Joan MacDonald didn’t enter a gym until she was 70. Really. Since then, the 80-year-old has transformed her health by losing three stone and building significant muscle, and now coaches other women through her training platform, Train With Joan, which she launched to help others boost their fitness at any age.

The premise of her app is simple: minimal-equipment workouts built around no-fuss, effective exercises that can be done anywhere. One ‘powerful core and stability exercise’ she swears by is alternating bodyweight clock taps. ‘This movement helps strengthen the muscles that keep you stable, balanced and moving well as you age,’ Joan explains.

Think they look too simple? That’s the point. Joan is adamant that ‘You don’t need complicated workouts to start getting stronger. Sometimes the most effective movements are the simple ones you do consistently.’

According to Joan, regularly performing bodyweight clock taps help:

• ‘Strengthen your core which supports your spine and reduces strain on your lower back.
• ‘Improve balance and coordination, helping you stay steady on your feet.
• ‘Increase hip stability, which supports your knees and joints.
• ‘Build functional strength for everyday movements like stepping, turning and reaching.
• ‘Help reduce fall risk by improving control and body awareness’

Find a demo from Joan above, along with instructions for how to do them with proper form below.

1. Stand on one leg with a slight bend in your supporting knee and brace your core.
2. Keeping your hips level, reach your free foot forward to lightly tap the floor in front of you (12 o’clock), then return to the centre.
3. Continue tapping to different “clock” positions—such as 3, 6 and 9 o’clock—maintaining your balance and control throughout.
4. Complete all reps on one leg before switching sides.

Form tip: Move slowly and focus on staying stable. The goal is controlled movement, not how far you can reach.

Joan shares her advice, according to your fitness level.

• Beginners: ‘3 taps per leg x 8-10 reps’
• Intermediate: ‘3 taps per leg x 10-12 reps’
• Advanced: ‘3 taps per leg x 12-15 reps’

One of our most frequently asked questions here at Women’s Health? How to build muscle and burn fat at the same time. So, we asked superstar trainer Oyinda Okunowo exactly how to do it. In this 4-week plan – created exclusively for Women’s Health COLLECTIVE members – you’ll get the workouts and nutrition guidance needed to help you on your way to better body composition. Tap the link below to unlock 14 days of free access to Oyinda’s plan and start training today.

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As Women’s Health UK’s fitness director and a qualified Pilates and yoga instructor, Bridie Wilkins has been passionately reporting on exercise, health and nutrition since the start of her decade-long career in journalism.

After earning a first-class degree in journalism and NCTJ accreditation, she secured her first role at Look Magazine, where she launched the magazine’s health and fitness column, Look Fit, before going on to become Health and Fitness writer at HELLO!

Since, she has written for Stylist, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Elle, The Metro, Runner’s World and Red. Today, she oversees all fitness content across Women’s Health online and in print, spearheading leading cross-platform franchises, such as ‘Fit At Any Age’, which showcases the women proving that age is no barrier to exercise.

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She has also represented the brand on BBC Radio London, plus various podcasts and Substacks – all with the aim to encourage more women to exercise and show them how. Outside of work, find her trying the latest Pilates studio, testing her VO2 max for fun (TY, Oura), or posting workouts on Instagram.   

In the 19 years since retiring from professional tennis, Tim Henman has barely aged. A large part of that comes down to his approach to fitness. The 51-year-old believes that ‘being active is always going to be a part of my identity’, which helps him maintain a consistent training routine.

Even while spending much of his time covering tennis as a commentator and pundit, and serving on the board at Wimbledon, Henman still makes time for his own athletic pursuits. Especially now that he has a different kind of motivation.

How Tim Henman Stays Fit After Retirement

‘I’ve got a gym at home and I try to exercise pretty regularly because I feel much better for it,’ Henman tells Men’s Health. ‘But one of my passions is wine. So if I’m having a few glasses of wine – you’ve got to treat yourself – then that definitely incentivises me to get in the gym. I’ve always exercised and I think it’s good for me both physically and mentally.’

That doesn’t mean Henman is completing brutal workouts or chasing specific performance goals. Instead, he prefers a straightforward routine that supports his lifestyle and helps him manage the wear and tear accumulated during his tennis career.

‘I don’t run that much anymore. We’ve got dogs at home, so I walk them a lot, and if I’m at tournaments or working, I’ll do quite a bit of incline walking on the treadmill. Then it’s just a good mix of weights and core work. I’m not trying to run any marathons – I’m just trying to stay in relatively good shape,’ he says.

‘I understand my body and know what I can and can’t do, especially because I’ve had three elbow surgeries and a shoulder surgery. So I’m a little careful around those joints.

‘Posture is so important for shoulder health. I focus on resistance-band exercises to make sure I’m strong through my back and maintaining good posture. Then the core is so important, so I try to stay strong through planks and side planks as much as possible.’

Why Henman Is Excited for the Laver Cup

His approach to fitness has changed dramatically over the past two decades. Where he once played tennis every day, Henman admits he’s now lucky if he gets on court twice a year. These days, golf is his sporting obsession.

That doesn’t mean he’s any less passionate about tennis, however, as he prepares to return as Team Europe vice-captain at the Laver Cup this September at The O2.

‘I’m so excited,’ he says. ‘The first time I ever experienced the Laver Cup was at The O2 when Roger Federer was retiring. I’d never seen the event live and I was probably a bit sceptical at that stage. But I was there working for television and, for those three days, I was completely blown away by the delivery of the event, the intensity of the players and the quality of the matches.

‘Tennis is an individual sport and players spend most of the year competing on their own. But I’d struggle to name any player, male or female, who doesn’t enjoy being in a team environment every once in a while.

‘The way the Laver Cup has evolved and grown is so special, and Federer deserves a lot of credit for that vision.

‘With an arena like The O2, it’s one of the biggest venues in tennis. There’ll be 17,000 or 18,000 people packed in there and, with the roof on, the atmosphere is incredible.’

Laver Cup returns to The O2, London, from 25-27 September, bringing together many of the world’s biggest tennis stars as Team Europe takes on Team World in the sport’s unique team competition. Tickets are on sale now via AXS, the official ticketing partner of The O2. Visit lavercup.com for more information.