The landmine device has existed in fitness circles for much longer than most people might imagine. Well before it emerged as a standard piece of gym equipment, weight trainers were improvising by wedging a barbell end into a wall corner to execute T-Bar Rows. This simple improvisation evolved into a highly effective tool for enhancing strength, power, and performance.
Numerous individuals perceive training with an angled barbell as merely a beginner-friendly version of traditional barbell lifts or simply supplementary exercises. In truth, the landmine setup enables you to handle substantial loads and execute movements with explosive speed without imposing undue stress on your joints. The distinctive angled trajectory of the bar accommodates various mobility limitations, permitting you to drive forcefully, pull rapidly, and incorporate rotational elements—precisely the qualities essential for developing power and superior athletic performance.
If your training objectives revolve around gaining additional muscle mass, boosting overall strength, and cultivating explosive power, there’s no reason to overlook the landmine; instead, integrate it fully into your routine. Landmine exercises effectively connect foundational strength training with dynamic athletic movements, positioning them as an indispensable component of any comprehensive workout program. In this article, I’ll first outline the selection criteria for the top 10 exercises before diving into detailed descriptions of each one.
Benefits of Landmine Exercises
These exercises aren’t chosen arbitrarily. Amidst a vast array of possible landmine variations, the following 10 stand out for specific, evidence-based reasons that align with strength, power, and performance goals.
Develop Power While Maintaining Strength
The landmine occupies an ideal position between the slow, grinding nature of heavy barbell lifts and the high-speed demands of plyometric drills. It allows you to propel weights quickly through complete ranges of motion, fostering power development without necessitating the advanced technical proficiency required for Olympic-style weightlifting. Consequently, you achieve more robust hip drive, quicker pressing actions, and dynamic pulling motions that directly enhance your primary compound lifts.
Gentler on Joints, Yet Demanding on Muscles
Thanks to its naturally angled bar path, the landmine positions your shoulders, hips, and spine in more biomechanically favorable alignments during lifts. This setup supports intense, heavy training sessions that promote muscle hypertrophy and strength gains while minimizing the joint wear typically associated with linear barbell movements or overhead pressing. The outcome is rigorous workouts that challenge your musculature profoundly without excessive physical punishment.
Build Strength Across Multiple Planes of Motion
Real-life activities and competitive sports rarely involve purely linear movements, and landmine training mirrors this reality. These exercises target strength in the sagittal plane (forward-backward), frontal plane (side-to-side), and transverse plane (rotational), thereby strengthening authentic, functional movement patterns. This multi-planar emphasis explains why landmine work translates so effectively to improved athletic performance and everyday strength applications.
Core Engagement in Every Single Repetition
The inherent offset loading, combined with rotational demands and unilateral stances in landmine movements, compels constant core activation. This includes bracing against instability, resisting rotational forces, and efficiently channeling power from the ground through the body. Unlike isolated core exercises, landmine training conditions the core to fulfill its primary role: providing stability and facilitating seamless force transmission between the lower and upper extremities.
Whether you’re a novice encountering landmine training for the first time or an advanced athlete seeking novel challenges, these exercises offer value for all levels. Select one or two from the list below, incorporate them strategically, and observe significant elevations in your overall training performance.
Landmine Split-Stance RDL to Row
This dynamic exercise merges a hip hinge pattern with a rowing pull, all within a split-stance position that thoroughly engages the posterior chain. The integration of the hinge and row amid the unilateral stance tests your capacity to transmit power asymmetrically through the body, while the landmine’s arc facilitates rapid movement of substantial weight without compromising form. Distribute the majority of your body weight onto the front foot, execute the hinge backward until your hamstrings are fully tensioned, and then explode into the row with maximal intent.
Sets & Reps: 3-4 sets of 6-8 reps per side
Landmine Rotational Clean to Press
The landmine rotational clean-to-press fuses a powerful hip-initiated clean with a twisting overhead press, converting lower-body explosiveness into upper-body development in a single, seamless sequence. This movement delivers athletic dynamism and potency without the steep learning curve of conventional Olympic lifts. It hones the skills of swift force generation, deceleration, and vector changes—fundamental elements of elite power output. The landmine’s constrained arc ensures fluid mechanics that spare the shoulders, enabling high-velocity bar movement. Maintain cleanliness and crispness in execution, absorbing the catch with loaded hips before seamlessly transitioning into the rotation and press.
Sets & Reps: 3-5 sets of 6-8 reps per side, prioritizing velocity above maximal loading
Landmine Coiled High Pull
This landmine coiled high pull represents a twisting, high-velocity pull originating from a pre-tensioned “coiled” posture—feet in a staggered setup, hips and upper body wound away from the bar—before you aggressively step into the line, uncoil, and yank the bar upward. The initial coil builds elastic tension in the hips and torso, which the subsequent explosive uncoiling unleashes into potent rotational and extension-based force production. Position your hips and torso modestly rotated opposite the bar, engage your core firmly, then propel the hips forward while rotating powerfully as you draw the bar tightly alongside your frame. Let the arms steer the path, with the hip snap supplying the dominant power source.
Sets & Reps: 3-5 sets of 5 reps per side, emphasizing explosive speed and precise technique
Standing Rotational Landmine Press
In the standing rotational landmine press, you generate motion by rotating through the hips and torso prior to pressing the bar overhead. Diverging from rigid overhead presses, this variation harnesses lower-body power to amplify upper-body pressing force. By starting the press via hip rotation, you cultivate efficient ground-to-extremity force transmission. Initiate with hip rotation, propel the bar upward while maintaining a neutral rib position, and culminate in a fully extended upright posture.
Sets & Reps: 3-4 sets of 6-8 reps per side, favoring speed rather than heaviest possible loads
Landmine Hip Thrust
The landmine hip thrust elevates a premier glute activation exercise by introducing an anchored bar that traces a biomechanically optimal arc during hip drive. This eliminates the cumbersome setup of traditional hip thrusts while promoting accelerated hip extension through the peak range. The diagonal loading incentivizes explosive completion at the top end, forging superior glute power and lockout strength. Position your upper back securely against a bench, retract your ribs, and tuck your chin. Thrust powerfully via your heels, snapping the hips to complete extension and contracting the glutes intensely at the apex.
Sets & Reps: 2-4 sets of 8-12 reps, concentrating on authoritative lockout power
Landmine Lateral Raise
Transforming the time-honored lateral raise for shoulders, the landmine version employs a preset diagonal trajectory that engages the deltoids in a novel manner compared to free-weight side lifts. This arc permits early acceleration in the lift followed by controlled deceleration under load, cultivating both power and muscular endurance in the shoulders without incurring joint discomfort. Maintain an erect posture and follow the bar’s inherent path fluidly. Accelerate the bar briskly yet preserve smoothness throughout.
Sets & Reps: 3 sets of 8-15 reps per side
Landmine T-Bar Row
As the foundational landmine exercise, the T-Bar Row remains a powerhouse for back development despite its understated popularity. The setup facilitates heavy pulling from a stable hip-hinge posture, with the bar naturally directing toward your core. Commencing each repetition from a static hold before exploding into the pull develops both power and hypertrophy in the lats and mid-to-upper back musculature. This enhanced pulling explosiveness benefits deadlifts, cleans, and any athletic endeavor requiring rapid, forceful upper-body engagement. Hinge forward at the hips, uphold a proud chest position, and retract the bar aggressively toward your lower ribcage before eccentrically controlling the descent.
Sets & Reps: 3-4 sets of 6-12 reps
Landmine Hack Squat
Positioned with the bar trailing behind, the landmine hack squat emphasizes quadriceps activation, emulating the mechanics of a machine-based hack squat. Though less technically demanding than free barbell squats, it robustly develops lower-body power and strength by enabling explosive ascents from deep positions. The vertical torso orientation and channeled bar path permit aggressive pressing without balance concerns or axial spinal loading. Sustain chest elevation, descend vertically, and explode upward through your midfoot. Visualize “driving the floor downward” with every repetition.
Sets & Reps: 3-4 sets of 8-15 reps, stressing velocity from the squat’s deepest point
Landmine Twist
Serving as a premier rotational core drill, the landmine twist conditions the torso to produce, manage, and absorb forces across rotational planes. Alternating sides via hip and core-driven bar guidance builds the rotational capacity vital for throwing sports, swinging implements, or rapid directional changes. Prioritize hip-led rotation, extend the arms fully, and govern the bar’s lateral travel with precision and control.
Sets & Reps: 3–5 sets of 6–10 reps per side
Landmine Offset Front Squat
By asymmetrically loading one side via the landmine, the offset front squat intensifies lower-body stabilization requirements alongside force production. This squat iteration simultaneously forges strength, combats rotation, and reinforces potent leg drive paired with core rigidity. The equipment’s inclination maintains an upright torso, channeling greater emphasis to the quadriceps. Grip the bar proximate to your sternum, preserve height, and surge vertically from depth while rigidly facing forward.
Sets & Reps: 3 sets of 5-8 reps per side
