Perhaps you’ve seen a lifter pressing, twisting, or rowing a barbell by rotating it on end. Appropriately named, these landmine exercises produce lethally effective workouts. Landmine training is performed in settings from Division 1 college weight rooms to bodybuilding gyms to injury rehab clinics.

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The barbell is used for lever-based resistance — one end pivots on the ground or in a purpose-built sleeve because the lifter moves the loaded end through space. Make no mistake, this isn’t flashy “training for the ‘Gram” or some gross misuse of apparatus.

The landmine provides opportunities for exercises with characteristics distinct from traditional free-weight training. The most effective part? Landmines offer versatility to coach the whole body together with multiple components of fitness. Here, you’ll find the most effective landmine workouts for constructing serious upper and lower-body muscle, together with elite-level conditioning. 

Best Landmine Workouts

Advantages of Landmine Training

Landmine training (literally) leverages a straightforward piece of apparatus for a wide selection of exercises. Traditional barbell training is already versatile, so why use your barbell as a landmine?

Landmines provide a more predictable bar path than a barbell moving freely through space. In motor learning — the scientific field that studies movement and skill acquisition — this predictable bar path represents a “constraint.” That’s, the landmine is constrained to maneuver along an arced path.

This constraint helps a lifter to master the shape of technical multi-joint lifts, similar to the presses, rows, and cleans utilized in the workouts below. It also promotes more consistent movement performance. Constant movements, when performed under load, stimulate the goal muscles exceptionally effectively. The result’s a fast-learning curve and predictable gains in strength and size.

The arced bar path also alters exercise form in comparison with barbell training. Landmine presses keep the shoulder out of end-range flexion, an area of common restriction. Landmine rows encourage ideal shoulder blade movement “down and back.” Landmine squats virtually ensure we sit back into our hips with an upright trunk position, which demands textbook form.

Landmine exercises also appear to emphasize our joints otherwise than traditional free weight lifts. (1) Altogether, the landmine could also be helpful if you’ve gotten banged up knees or shoulders. Set your landmine and prepare for a special angle on barbell training. 

Best Landmine Workout for Upper Body Muscle

The upper body landmine workout below is sort of a multi-course meal — a feast in your muscles. The meat and potatoes are compound exercises followed by isolation movements. 

Compound exercises, or those involving multiple joints, are efficient because they train many muscle groups concurrently. They’re also very effective for constructing strength because they permit you to move heavier loads than exercises training a single joint in isolation.

Upper body compound exercises are broadly categorized as either “pushes” or “pulls.” Pushing exercises involve driving a resistance away from the body and training the chest, shoulders, and triceps. Pulling exercises involve drawing a resistance toward the body. These exercises train the back and biceps.

The compound exercises on this workout are structured as a series of push/pull supersets for efficiency. The ultimate two movements are isolation exercises like a satisfying dessert after the predominant course. They train the glamour muscles that stretch our sleeves and broaden our frame.

Upper Body Training, One Arm at a Time

As a consequence of the lever-based resistance of the landmine, your typical free weight loads and percentages is not going to be appropriate. It will be best to find out appropriate working weights that end in “hard” sets inside the really useful repetition range.

To find out working weight for every exercise, perform two or more progressively heavier “work up” sets. When you land on a weight that challenges you inside the set rep range, keep on with that load in your working sets. 

Half-Kneeling Landmine Press

• The way to Do it: Assume a “half-kneeling” position with the working-side knee down. Hold the bar above your shoulder, brace your torso, and drive the bar up and forward along the natural arc of the landmine. Lower to the starting position.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 6-10 per arm.
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the following exercise.

Meadows Row

• The way to Do it: Stand perpendicular to the landmine. Hold the bar sleeve with an overhand grip and brace your non-working arm in your thigh. Lift the bar by driving your elbow out as you squeeze your shoulder blade toward your spine. Lower to full extension until you are feeling an intense stretch behind your shoulder. Be sure you load the bar with small diameter plates (five, 10, or 25-pound) to permit an prolonged range of motion.

• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12 per arm.
• Rest time: Rest two to 3 minutes before repeating the previous exercise.

Standing Landmine Press

• The way to Do it: Face the landmine with a staggered stance, keeping your working side leg behind you. Press the bar forward and up until your elbow reaches full extension. Lower with control.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12 per arm.
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the following exercise.

Landmine Row

• The way to Do it: Stand parallel to the barbell. Hinge forward on the hips and grip the barbell just before the sleeve. Pull your shoulder and arm back to row the burden toward the skin of your hip. Lower with control.

• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12 per arm.
• Rest time: Rest two to 3 minutes before repeating the previous exercise.

Landmine Lateral Raise

• The way to Do it: Stand with the tip of the barbell just in front of your working side hip, quarter turned toward the landmine. Lift by pushing the bar forward and out until your wrist is higher than shoulder. Lower with control.
• Sets and Reps: 3 x 12-16 per arm
• Rest time: No rest before moving to the following exercise.

Landmine Concentration Curl

• The way to Do it: Drop right into a wide-stance quarter squat and brace your upper arm against your inner thigh. Grab the tip of the bar sleeve. Without moving your upper arm, curl the landmine barbell. Notice how the bar path forces you to maintain your palm turned up and out as you curl. This enhances biceps stimulus. (2)(3) Lower with control. 

• Sets and Reps: 3 x 8-12 per arm.
• Rest time:Rest 90 seconds to 2 minutes before repeating the previous exercise.

Best Landmine Workout for Lower Body Muscle

Wheels, lower extremities, jets, getaway sticks — whatever you call them, most individuals want strong, muscular legs.

Just like the upper body, the essential compound movements of the lower body might be categorized as push and pull or, more commonly, squats and deadlifts, respectively. Squats and squat-derivatives train the glutes, quadriceps, and calf muscles. Deadlifts and deadlift-derivatives train the hamstrings and in addition hit the glutes.

Leg-Constructing Landmine Workout

This workout combines heavy, double-legged exercises with single-leg lifts to advertise athleticism, and it finishes with a loaded mobility exercise for the commonly-neglected inner thigh muscles.

The landmine provides a small amount of balance assistance, which can allow single-leg variations of squats and deadlifts to be loaded heavier than free-weight single-leg versions.

To make sure adequate recovery, the lower body landmine exercises are structured as straight sets. Take two to three-minute rests to make sure intensity is maintained for max strength gains. (4)

Landmine Squat

• The way to Do it: Cradle the tip of the barbell atop your sternum together with your arms pulled in toward your ribs. To account for the arced path of the bar, place your feet farther from the plates in order that your body is inclined forward in the highest position. Squat down so far as your mobility allows, and return to standing. 

• Sets and Reps: 3 x 6-10
• Rest time: Rest two to 3 minutes between sets.

Modified Single-Leg Landmine Romanian Deadlift

• The way to Do it: Unlike the usual single-leg landmine Romanian deadlift, which is performed facing the landmine, (5) the modified version provides more stability, which allows you to lift more weight. Stand perpendicular to the landmine. Hold the sleeve palm-down together with your inside hand. Hinge forward at your hips and permit your inside leg to travel behind you, while that foot rises into the air. Keep a slight bend in your standing knee and descend until you are feeling a powerful sense of tension in your hamstring. Return to standing and repeat.

• Sets and Reps: 3 x 6-10 per leg.
• Rest time: Rest 2 to three minutes between sets.

Landmine Hack Squat

• The way to Do it: Make sure you landmine base is secure and is not going to slide. Face away from the landmine and rest the sleeve in your upper trapezius, just contained in the point of the shoulder. Position your feet well in front of your body. Keep your feet flat as you descend right into a deep squat, reaching your hamstrings to your calves if possible. Drive up and back to the starting position. In your next set, rack the landmine in your opposite shoulder.

• Sets and Reps: 2 x 12-16
• Rest time: Rest two to 3 minutes between sets.

Landmine Cossack Squat

• The way to Do it: Face the landmine with a large stance and hold the landmine in front of your sternum. Sit down and back, sinking into your right hip while allowing your left foot to pivot onto the heel. Push through your right leg to return to center. Perform all repetitions to the best, then repeat to the left.

• Sets and Reps: 2 x 8-10 per side.
• Rest time: Rest two to 3 minutes between sets.

Landmine Workout for Conditioning

Barbell complexes are commonly used for metabolic conditioning. Complexes are sequences of lifts performed in continuous succession. The lifter finishes all reps of 1 lift before moving on to the following, using the identical piece of apparatus and the identical weight for all movements.

Complexes might be designed to tax every energy system — the phosphagen system provides quick bursts of power. The glycolytic system becomes distinguished because the complex drags on for greater than the primary few reps. Finally, in the event you string multiple complexes together in a fashion popularized by many notorious CrossFit workouts, the aerobic system helps you get better.

Every Two-Minute On the Two-Minute Landmine Complex

The landmine is a superb tool for complexes. The workout below uses repeated landmine complexes to advertise metabolic conditioning. For simplicity, a time-based rest strategy provides most athletes an approximate 1:1 work to rest ratio. Every two minutes, you’ll start a recent complex and complete it as quickly as you’ll be able to.

• The way to Do it: Place a moderate amount of weight on the landmine. First perform the Landmine Hang Clean & Jerk — Stand perpendicular to the bar and hold the sleeve within the hang position (palm down together with your hand near your hip). Extend your hips, knees, and ankles as you shrug and pull the bar along its natural arc. Because the bar is in motion, pivot to face the landmine and receive the bar together with your other hand. Perform a split jerk by dropping down and immediately driving back up together with your legs as you extend your elbow and switch your footing. Control the bar back to the hang position with each hands.The following movement is the classic standing Landmine Rotation — Hold the bar with each arms outstretched above you. Lower the bar to the left, allowing your hips to rotate and your feet to pivot. Rotate the landmine back up and across to the best, again allowing your feet and hips to maneuver easily.The third and final exercise on this complex is a Landmine Push Press — This exercise begins just like a shallow landmine squat with a ballistic concentric (“up”) phase. Transfer the energy out of your leg drive into each arms as you press the bar up and forward. Repeat the method for for every repetition.

• Sets and Reps: One “set” of the complex consists of three reps of every movement — 3 per side landmine hang clean & jerk, 3 rotations in each direction, and three push presses. Perform one set every two minutes for a complete of 12 to 16 minutes.
• Rest time: Perform one full set and rest the rest of the 2 minute block. This rest strategy is a variation on the rather more popular EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute), but “E2MO2M” doesn’t have the identical ring.

The way to Warm-Up for Landmine Workouts

Before you detonate these workouts, perform a high-quality warm-up to make sure your body is primed for performance. Options for effective warm-ups are innumerable, but for many who can’t spare the bandwidth to conjure one up, here’s a straightforward plan.

Start with 5 – 6 minutes of low intensity aerobic exercise (jump rope, bike, or cardio approach to selection), then grab a lightweight resistance band and move through the next sequence:

Landmine Workout Warm-Up

• Deep Squat with Trunk Rotations: Drop down right into a deep squat. Keep your chest up and reach toward the bottom with each arms between your legs. Use one arm to “pry” your same-side thigh outward as you reach up with the opposite arm. As you reach, keep your eyes in your overhead palm by rotating and increasing your trunk. Repeat with the opposite hand. Perform 8 rotations in each direction, alternating sides each repetition.

• Backstep Lunge to Hip Flexor Stretch: Take a big step backwards and lower your knee to the bottom. Squeeze your rear-leg glute muscles to feel a stretch within the front of the hip or thigh. When you are unable to attain a stretch, try and tuck your pelvis under your body by bringing your belt buckle toward your chin. Hold the position momentarily. Return to standing and repeat with the alternative leg. Perform 8 reps per leg.
• Plank to Pike: Assume a tall plank or “top of the push-up position” supporting your body in your palms and forefeet. Move right into a pike position by pushing forward together with your hands and driving your hips back and up, Keep your spine, arms, and legs straight. Return to the plank position. Perform 8 reps. 
• Dynamic Hug: Wrap a lightweight resistance band around your back slightly below your shoulder blades. Stand with arms outreached straight ahead at shoulder-height. Reach forward in a “hugging” motion. Imagine you’re wrapping your arms around a huge tree to maximise the space between your arms as you reach your hands together. Reverse the movement, allowing your shoulder blades to maneuver toward your spine as you open your arms. Perform 8 repetitions.
• Band Pull-Apart: Hold the resistance band straight ahead together with your arms in front of your shoulders. Stretch the band by pulling your arms apart without bending your elbows. Initiate the movement by squeezing your shoulder blades toward your spine. When your hands are sideways in-line together with your shoulders, return to the starting position. Perform 8 repetitions. 

An Angled Approach to Recent Gains

The landmine is a fun and versatile tool for training all major muscle groups. Landmine lifts promote a balanced physique while hammering the core, and should actually end in superior gains in on-field or on-court athleticism. (6) Bookmark these landmine workouts and blast your next high-quality training session.

References

1. Collins, K. S., Klawitter, L. A., Waldera, R. W., Mahoney, S. J., & Christensen, B. K. (2021). Differences in muscle activity and kinetics between the goblet squat and landmine squat in men and ladies. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 35(10), 2661-2668.
2. Murray, W. M., Delp, S. L., Buchanan, T. S. (1995). Variation of muscle moment arms with elbow and forearm position. Journal of Biomechanics, 28(5), 513-525.
3. Kleiber, T., Kunz, L., & Disselhorst-Klug, C. (2015). Muscular coordination of biceps brachii and brachioradialis in elbow flexion with respect at hand position. Frontiers in Physiology, 6, 215.
4. Schoenfeld, B. J., Pope, Z. K., Benik, F. M., et al. (2016). Longer interset rest periods enhance muscle strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 30(7), 1805-1812.
5. Weaver, A. N., & Kerksick, C. M. (2017). Implementing landmine single-leg Romanian deadlift into an athlete’s training program. Strength & Conditioning Journal, 39(1), 85-90.
6. Zweifel, M. (2017). Importance of horizontally loaded movements to sports performance. Strength and Conditioning Journal, 39(1), 21-26.

Featured Image: Merrick Lincoln, DPT, CSCS / YouTube