Cory Everson Turns 50!

I first met Cory Everson in 1990 at a bodybuilding camp in Los Angeles, California, where she was a guest speaker. I still have the detailed notes that I took from her presentation. In the same year, I saw her T.V. show, Bodyshaping, on ESPN. I was hooked by her fun, friendly teaching style. While she taught the mechanics of weight training and exercise, she also entertained the audience. As a result, her zestful approach attracted thousands of couch potatoes to the gym and motivated those already in progress. Bodyshaping inspired their dedicated audience for eight years and I have to admit that I arranged my personal training clients around the show. I intentionally scheduled the cardio segment of their workouts to match the air time of the show, so that we (clients and I) could watch. Thankfully, my clients were avid fans also.

In 1998 and 1999, I had the privilege of working with Cory at her Fitness Adventure Camps in Malibu, California. Our mutual friend, Dr. Tim Moore, was responsible for getting me on board with Cory. At the time, Dr. Moore was the Fitness Editor for Shape Magazine and had featured me in their personal training column in the April and July issues in 1998. Just months before, Dr. Moore and I served on a national exam-writing committee for the American Council on Exercise, in San Diego, California. I told him one day during lunch that I was going to apply for a staff position at her camps. He said that he was a personal friend of Cory and that he could “hand-deliver” my application to her. I laughed and said, “yeah, right.” Well, he was right and within a week, he delivered my letter.

Working at the two camps were highlights of my career for several reasons. First, I was impressed that the Cory you see on T.V. was the Cory you see in person. Second, was the added benefit of meeting and working with Cory’s talented staff. She gathered great presenters, instructors, T.V. personalities, publishers, promoters, authors, celebrity athletes, and champions from all walks of life. It was a joy to work Cameo Kneuer- Bernard (Cory’s sister), Michelle LeMay, Tim Moore, Shannon Farar-Griefer, and Lynn Conkwright. My adventures with Lynn were not limited to onsite camp events. We spent a lot of time off campus during the evenings. I learned that Lynn’s athletic gifts extend beyond bodybuilding and gymnastics…she is good at playing pool.

Thirdly, I was impressed with Cory’s guest speakers. One night, Jeff Everson talked to the group and although I can’t remember his topic…I do remember his shoes. Perhaps I was a bit star-struck. Since 1985, I had been a fan of his writings and was impressed with his style. But on this night, honestly, I was riveted by his blue suede shoes! (I never met Elvis) To this day, I can see those blue shoes quietly shuffling around as he spoke. In retrospect, I regret not listening more closely to his message.

And my final point about working with Cory relates to the fact that it had been my #1 career goal. No doubt, I was at the right time at the right place when I met Dr. Tim Moore. Pretty lucky, I would say.

Who’s turning 50?

The issue of age was on my mind since my husband, Dan, was about to turn 50. Although he wasn’t too concerned about it, I was. Obviously the milestone strikes people in different ways. His unemotional reaction to it is reflected by his casual comment, “It is just a number, what’s the big deal?” His stoic position may be common but a stark contrast to mine. A few weeks before I turned 50, Dan asked me if I wanted to have a party. I said “No, I’ll just sit in the closet all day, and no, I don’t want to talk about it.” Obviously, I wasn’t too thrilled and just wanted to get over the hump.

In October of 2007, I was thinking about other people I know who would soon turn 50. Then, I wondered when it was Cory’s turn? So I emailed her and asked. She confirmed that she was born on January 4, 1958 and was surprised herself at the upcoming milestone. I had spent a lot of time searching the internet and found that most of the articles cited January 4, 1959 as her date of birth. This puzzled me so I asked her to confirm the date one more time just to be sure, which she did.

Cory’s story:

We talked more about the big day and when I asked her if I could write a story about it, she said “sure.” I pitched it to Iron Man Magazine and within a week, I received an email from Steve Holman, the Editor in Chief saying that IM would like the story. The article was supposed to be 1,300 words but grew to over 5,000. Cory sent new ideas everyday for a week! Thankfully, Iron Man accepted our additions and agreed to make it a big cover story.

In my multiple interviews and email exchanges with Cory, I was struck by her complete honesty about career, relationships, family, goals, and dreams. The ongoing theme was how other people have enriched her life. Other people, this person, that person. It was hard to get her to focus on her own accomplishments. It was a challenge to get her to realize that for those who didn’t know about her life-threatening illness in 1984, learning about it would have a great impact on the reader.

She wanted to minimize that part of the story. As a writer, I saw it differently and finally convinced her that what and who she became as a result of the ongoing illness, actually defined her. Being challenged by the shocking illness, her personal strengths were forced to surface and take action. In the interview, she continued to give credit to other people for surviving but in reality, she saved herself with hard work, Faith, positive thinking, and tenacity. (After you read the article, you’ll understand.)

In addition to the story itself, Cory wanted to add depth to the article. She asked me to contact her friends, family, teachers, coaches, actors, and close network of people in the bodybuilding world to ask for their own comments about “Cory turning 50.” For the next two weeks, I worked frantically to get their response to meet my deadline with IM. I was thrilled to hear from many of them right away. Many of them preferred to talk with me on the phone instead of sending an email. These were remarkably moving. While many were hilariously funny, many of them brought me to tears with their endearing words about their experience(s) with Cory. Bo Jackson’s comments were especially touching. The more he spoke, the more elaborate the words.

Actor Kevin Sorbo told some funny stories. One day on the set of “Hercules,” he asked Cory if she played tennis. Being the super-athlete that she truly is…she said “of course.” So a challenge ensued. He was shocked to learn how athletic she was on the court…and he lost. Today, he laughs about it. I think the famous actor had many more entertaining stories to tell, but I was trying to meet a deadline.

Everyone that I spoke with on the phone had great things to say and they were excited about the article. Comments sent through email were challenging for me as a writer, since I requested a few sentences to describe their thoughts and received two pages of text in many cases. As a result, I had the opportunity to sharpen my editing skills. I was disappointed that I couldn’t find some of the contacts even though I scrambled around the internet for hours into the night for several weeks in search of them.

Cory’s list:
ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER
JOE WEIDER
CAMEO KNEUER-BERNARD
LYNN CONKWRIGHT
LARRY SCOTT
BILL PEARL
FRANK ZANE
BEV FRANCES
JIM MANION
BO JACKSON
MICHELL LEMAY
CLARK AND PATTY SANCHEZ
RANDY BERNARD
KEVIN SORBO
GREGG HARTLEY
JENNIFER CHANDLER
TOM SPAGNOLA
DOUG FLUTIE
MUHAMMED ALI
LOREN SEAGRAVE
BARB JIRKA
MISS ANN SMALL
DIANA ANTIN
SHANNON FARAR-GRIEFER
DARCI WOOD
ERIN LANDRUM
BRETT KATZ
BOB BARTHOLOMEW
ANJA LANGER
MIKE NEVEUX
HERSCHEL WALKER
TOMMY LASORDA
PETE ROSE
PETER TEGEN
CARLA DUNLOP
ROWDY GAINS
ERIC HEIDEN

Friends:

One of Lee Iacocca’s famous quotes about friendship is “My father always used to say that when you die, if you've got five real friends, then you've had a great life.” Clearly, Cory has an abundance of friends and I know that she feels blessed.

The comment that wasn’t published in IronMan:

I was struck with my conversation with Ann Small, one of Cory’s high school coaches.
When asked how she remembers Cory, she said “Cory was the best female athlete Deerfield High School had ever seen. She was intelligent, confident, and well liked by others. I still have a painting she created for me when she was still in high school.”

That would have thirty plus years ago, I thought to myself. Her coach kept the painting for over thirty years and cherishes it so much that it is still hanging on the wall! Hmmm, I wonder what that paining looks like? The tone in Miss Small’s voice reflected warmth and gratitude for having known the young, vibrant, and talented Cory.

What does 50 typically look like?

When I showed the cover of the February issue of Iron Man to my aunt Gaynell, she said, “So this is Cory. If she is 50, her breasts don’t know it, nor does the rest of her body.” Everyone else had a similar reaction. The women say, “I wish I looked like that” and the men say, “I wish my wife looked like that.” It’s unanimous. Everyone is impressed.
Unfortunately, most 50 year olds look like…well, you know.

She isn’t average now and never has been. There is nothing average about her except her cooking, which is reported as being dangerous. (This has been confirmed by numerous reliable sources.) So far, she has defied all statistical norms for her age group.

This year, she is poised to skew every statistic reported by the National Institute on Aging, AARP, and the National Institutes on Health. Examples: 65% of the average American 50 year old is either overweight or obese. Only 26% engage in leisure time activity. In a 2004 survey, only 47 percent of the 50+ population reported their health as excellent or very good. Not surprisingly, Cory maintains a weight within 5 – 7 lbs. of her high school weight; she exercises regularly, and has excellent health. Her dietary habits are respectable, with the exception of her self-proclaimed addiction to cookie dough and chocolate.

Before my interview with Cory, I knew details about her rigorous training routine and carefully designed nutritional strategies. I’ve read all of her books and watched her exercise videos. So what new things did I learn?

1. Importance of setting priorities in life.
2. Value of maintaining a positive outlook on life.
3. How to find and use personal strengths to reach goals and overcome obstacles.
4. Understand the role of taking one step at a time and appreciate their significance.
5. The potential impact of treating people with kindness and helping them find courage during tough times.
6. Success is within reach with the right mindset.

In closing:

These are valuable lessons that everyone can use. As a Wellcoach, I often work with people who seem to be stuck in a rut. They might be having trouble getting to the next step or lack the confidence or courage to continue. My clients want to meet their goals but may lack the proper skills to succeed. Clients who aspire to change often beat themselves up for not meeting their goals due to their reliance on willpower. As a coach, I focus on developing skillpower, not willpower, for successful behavior change.

If you are interested in learning more about setting realistic goals, taking one step at a time, learning how to give yourself credit for even the tiniest task, and approaching wellness with a new mindset, contact me. If you aren’t sure about how Wellcoaching works, let’s talk about it on the phone. I’m confident that you will find it intriguing.

You are invited!

I am currently conducting an eight-week program online for weight loss. These 60 minute sessions are called “webinars” and are conducted live, in real time. You can access them through your office, home, or laptop computer. The conference line connects everyone through telephones, allowing interaction within the group. The sessions are informative, inspirational, motivational, and fun!

Go to www.wellcoachtexas to see the schedule or to get more information. As a Maximum Balance reader, you are invited to attend these online seminars FREE during the month of March. Registration is required. Please note in your email that you are a Maximum Balance reader.

Request a copy of the article about Cory:

If you want a copy of the Iron Man article published in the February 2008 issue, email babswellcoach@gmail.com. Also, visit my website for details:
www.wellcoachtexas.com

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