Landmine Press
The landmine press is a single-arm press that drives one end of a barbell, anchored at the floor, up and forward along an arc from the front of your shoulder. It works the front of the shoulder, the upper chest, the triceps and the serratus anterior, while the one-sided load makes your trunk resist twisting.
Also called: Landmine Shoulder Press, Angled Barbell Press, Single Arm Landmine Press, Standing Landmine Press · Equipment: barbell · Pattern: push
Step by step
- Anchor one end of a barbell in a landmine unit or a corner and load the free end. Stand facing the loaded end.
- Lift the end of the bar and hold it in one hand at the front of your shoulder, with your elbow tucked in front of your ribs and your wrist stacked over the elbow.
- Stand tall with your feet about hip-width apart, or in a split stance with the foot on the pressing side behind you. Brace your trunk, pull your ribs down and squeeze your glutes.
- Press the bar up and slightly forward along its natural arc until your elbow is straight. Let your shoulder blade glide forward and up as you reach at the top.
- Keep your torso tall and square to the bar throughout, with no lean back or twist towards the bar.
- Bring the bar back down under control to the front of your shoulder.
- Complete the reps on one side, then change hands and repeat.
- Press up and slightly forward along the arc
- Stay tall, torso square to the bar
- Reach through at the top
- Ribs down, trunk braced
- Wrist stacked over the elbow
In VALDA, these cues are one tap away on the exercise while you train.
What it trains
| Muscle | Role | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Anterior deltoid | Prime mover | C |
| Pectoralis major: clavicular (upper) | Secondary | C |
| Triceps brachii: lateral head | Secondary | C |
| Triceps brachii: medial head | Secondary | C |
| Lateral deltoid | Secondary | D |
| Pectoralis major: sternocostal (mid) | Secondary | D |
| Trapezius: upper | Stabiliser | D |
| Obliques (internal/external) | Stabiliser | D |
| Serratus anterior | Dynamic stabiliser | C |
Evidence grades: A = strong research base · B = good · C = limited · D = coaching consensus.
What goes wrong, and the fix
Leaning back or side-bending to finish
Fix: Stay tall with ribs down; use a lighter load or a kneeling stance if you lean.
Forcing a vertical bar path
Fix: Press up and slightly forward, following the arc the bar wants to travel.
Shoulder blade pinned back
Fix: Let your shoulder blade glide forward and up as you reach at the top.
Wrist bent back
Fix: Hold the bar end low in the palm with your wrist stacked over your elbow.
Torso twisting towards the bar
Fix: Brace before each rep and keep your hips and shoulders square to the bar.
What the research says
Rehab & prehab · first choiceGeneral fitness · first choiceSport performance · first choicePowerStrengthMuscle growthEnduranceFat loss & conditioning
- Load by goal — Research comparing loads finds maximal strength favours heavier loads, while muscle growth is similar across a wide range of loads when sets are taken close to failure.
- Effort — Studies show sets that finish a few reps short of failure capture most of the size benefit, and strength gains appear largely insensitive to how close to failure you train.
- Volume and frequency — Research links more weekly sets for a muscle to more growth, with diminishing returns. Around 10 or more hard sets a week has been associated with more growth than fewer than 5, and training a muscle about twice a week is a common way to spread that volume.
- Stability and load — Shoulder-press research found the least stable setups produced the highest deltoid activity but the lowest maximal loads. A standing single-arm press sits on the less stable side of that trade-off.
- Serratus anterior — EMG studies show the serratus anterior is most active in movements that raise the arm while the shoulder blade rotates up and forward, which the landmine arc allows. No study has measured the landmine press directly.
- Sets and reps — A common approach is 3–5 sets of 6–15 reps per arm when muscle growth is the aim, or 3–6 reps per arm for strength, often placed after a main press.
Swap it mid-workout
- Incline Barbell Bench Press
- Incline Chest Press Machine
- Incline Dumbbell Press
- Smith Machine Incline Bench Press
- Barbell Bradford Press
- Barbell Overhead Press
With VALDA Pro, FLEX offers alternatives like these when you swap an exercise mid-workout.
Log the landmine press in VALDA, with these cues one tap away while you train and your history for it in one place.
General information about exercise technique, not medical advice. If you have an injury or a health condition, your healthcare provider is the right person to ask.