Landmine exercises are a great way to get stronger and add variety to your training program. We previously covered the best lower-body landmine exercises, and now we are going to do the same for the upper-body.

Upper-body landmine exercises provide a few benefits over their barbell or dumbbell counterparts, such as being a bit easier on the shoulders or strengthening the core. That’s why these are great moves to add to your repertoire, to always have an exercise to challenge and strengthen your body exactly the way you want to.

There are many great upper-body landmine exercises, but here are a few of our favorites. 

Upper-Body Landmine Exercises

Landmine Row

The Landmine Row is similar to a Barbell Row, working your big back muscles. However, the weight is closer to your center of gravity because it’s between your legs, rather than out in front like during the barbell version. It’s a bit easier to perform correctly without your torso rising up, and it seems to put less stress on your lower back. Personally, the Landmine Row is one of my favorite exercises to build a strong back.

Single-Arm Landmine Row

The Row variation works the same muscles as the regular Landmine Row, but working one side at a time has two benefits. First, you create balanced strength on your left and right sides. Second, the asymmetrical load forces your core muscles to work overtime to prevent your torso from rotating.

Landmine Lateral Raise

Strength coach Ben Bruno is a big fan of the Landmine Lateral Raise. It builds strong shoulders, and you don’t even have to lift a weight overhead. As an added bonus, it increases core strength.

Half-Kneeling or Standing Single-Arm Landmine Press

The Single-Arm Landmine Press from either a half-kneeling or standing position is a great way to train shoulder and chest strength. We learned this one from STACK Expert Tony Gentilcore, who often uses it with his baseball players because it’s a safe way to build shoulder strength without having to perform overhead lifts, which can sometimes be problematic.

Crossbody Row and Press

We saw this move performed by NHL defenseman Mike Green at Crash Conditioning (Calgary, Alberta, Canada). The row improves back strength and the cross-body action strengthens your core. Finishing with the press strengthens your chest and shoulders, making these a complete upper-body move.

Landmine Bus Driver

Although this is primarily a core exercise, we’re going to lump it into the upper-body exercises. Your entire upper-body and torso is engaged as you rotate the bar from hip to hip. Your core will be on fire, and you’ll feel your arms and shoulders working to move the bar and maintain body control.