Landmine Press Alternative: 8 Swaps That Keep the Angled Path

The best landmine press alternative is the half-kneeling single-arm dumbbell press with a slight forward lean, because it puts your arm on the same diagonal, up-and-forward line that makes the landmine press so kind to sore shoulders. A steep incline dumbbell press and a low-to-high cable press come next. Below are eight substitutes ranked by how closely each copies the landmine press's defining trait, its angled pressing arc, plus a no-attachment workaround if you own a barbell but nothing to anchor it in.

Quick answer: the ranking at a glance

Rank	Alternative	Kit needed	Why it's a close match
1	Half-kneeling single-arm dumbbell press (forward lean)	One dumbbell	Same diagonal line, same one-arm brace
2	Steep incline dumbbell press (45 to 60 degrees)	Dumbbells plus adjustable bench	Angle sits between chest and overhead press
3	Single-arm cable press from a low pulley	Cable machine	Resistance follows an up-and-forward line
4	Corner-of-the-room barbell press	Barbell plus a towel	It is a landmine press, minus the attachment
5	Neutral-grip (Viking-style) press	Viking handle or dumbbells	Palms-facing grip, friendlier shoulder position
6	Band diagonal press	Resistance band	Arc-style pressing with almost no kit
7	Arnold press	Dumbbells	Rotating path, but finishes straight overhead
8	Seated dumbbell shoulder press	Dumbbells plus bench	Same muscles, vertical path

Ranks 7 and 8 are there for completeness. They train the same front delts but lose the angle, so pick them only if your shoulders are happy overhead.

What a good landmine press substitute has to do

The landmine press is a front delt and upper chest exercise with a lot of core and serratus work thrown in. The bar is pinned at one end, so it moves on a fixed arc: up and away from you, finishing with your arm roughly in line with your ear but in front of your head rather than directly above it. That diagonal path is the whole point. People who get a pinch at the top of an overhead press often press pain-free on a landmine.

There's a simple mechanical reason that angle feels better. A 2018 ultrasound study of healthy adults measured the subacromial space (the gap the rotator cuff tendons sit in) and found it was smaller with the arm raised to 90 degrees than with the arm by the side; actively pinching the shoulder blades back made only a minimal difference (Harput et al., 2018). So cueing your scapula won't fix everything. Changing the angle of the press, which is what a landmine does, is usually the more reliable lever.

That gives us three tests for any alternative:

1. Does it keep the arm on a diagonal rather than straight up?
2. Can it be done one arm at a time, so your trunk has to resist twisting?
3. Can you load it progressively with kit you actually own?

The 8 best landmine press alternatives, ranked

1. Half-kneeling single-arm dumbbell press with a forward lean

Kneel with the knee on your pressing side down and the other foot planted in front, exactly as you would for a half-kneeling landmine press. Hold a dumbbell at the front of your shoulder with a neutral or slightly angled grip, then hinge forward from the hips by about 20 to 30 degrees, keeping your spine long. Press up and slightly forward so the dumbbell ends over the front of your head rather than directly above your shoulder.

That forward lean is what turns a plain shoulder press into a landmine copy: tilt your torso and a vertical press becomes a diagonal one. You keep the kneeling stance's anti-rotation challenge too, so your obliques and glutes work hard to stop you leaning sideways.

• Cue: squeeze the glute on the down-knee side and keep your ribs stacked over your hips; don't let the lean turn into a lower-back arch.
• Sets and reps: 3 to 4 sets of 8 to 12 per arm.

2. Steep incline dumbbell press (45 to 60 degrees)

Set an adjustable bench to 45 degrees, or one notch higher if your bench has a 60-degree setting, and press two dumbbells from shoulder height to lockout. As the Callout above shows, that angle shifts the work towards your front delts while still involving the upper chest, which is very close to the landmine press's muscle blend. Our incline dumbbell press guide covers grip width and elbow angle.

You lose the standing or kneeling core demand, but you gain the ability to go heavy and stable. A single-arm version, with your free hand gripping the bench, brings some of the anti-rotation back.

• Sets and reps: 3 to 4 sets of 8 to 12.

3. Single-arm cable press from a low pulley

Set a pulley at its lowest point, stand or half-kneel facing away from it, and hold the handle at the front of your shoulder. Press up and forward on a diagonal, roughly 45 degrees above horizontal. Because the cable pulls from below and behind, the resistance runs along the same up-and-forward line as a landmine, and tension stays on the shoulder all the way to lockout.

It's arguably the most adjustable option on this list; a small step forward or back changes the angle instantly. If you're training at home, a wall-mounted cable machine or one of the units in our best cable machine UK guide makes this an everyday exercise. For more ideas with the same kit, see our cable shoulder exercises.

• Cue: stagger your feet if standing, and don't let the cable rotate your torso back towards the stack.
• Sets and reps: 3 sets of 10 to 15 per arm.

4. Corner-of-the-room barbell press

If you have a barbell but no landmine attachment, you can still do the real thing. Push one sleeve of an unloaded bar into the corner where two walls meet, wrap the end in a folded towel (an old trainer jammed over the sleeve also works), then lift the other end and press exactly as you would on a landmine.

It's rank four only because of the practical risks, not the movement. The bar end will scuff paint and skirting boards over time, it can dent laminate or wooden floors, and on smooth surfaces it may slide out mid-set. Keep the load light, use a rubber gym tile or a doormat under the sleeve, and check the bar is seated before every set. If this becomes a weekly habit, a landmine attachment costs less than redecorating.

5. Neutral-grip (Viking-style) press

A neutral grip, with palms facing each other, lets the elbows travel slightly in front of the body instead of flaring out to the sides. Many lifters find that alone makes overhead pressing more comfortable. A Viking press handle (which, confusingly, often uses a landmine-style pivot) gives you this grip with a fixed arc; dumbbells held palms-in work almost as well. Our Viking press guide explains the setup.

It ranks below the first four because a dumbbell neutral-grip press still finishes vertically unless you add a forward lean.

6. Band diagonal press

Anchor a long resistance band low behind you, under your back foot in a split stance or around a post at ankle height, and press the handle up and forward on a diagonal. The band gets harder as you extend, so tension peaks near lockout, much like the top of a landmine press. It's the cheapest way to train the pattern at home or when travelling; see our best resistance bands UK guide for bands with handles.

The downside is load. Heavier bands become awkward to set up, so this works best as a high-rep option (15 to 20 reps) or a warm-up before heavier pressing.

7. Arnold press

The Arnold press starts with dumbbells in front of your face, palms towards you, and rotates the palms forward as you press. The early part of the rep travels in front of the body like a landmine press, which is why it makes the list. The finish, though, is straight overhead, so if top-end overhead reach is what bothers your shoulder, skip this one.

8. Seated dumbbell shoulder press

The dumbbell shoulder press trains the same front delts and triceps, and it's easy to load and progress. It loses the angle completely, so it's a substitute for the muscles rather than the movement. Use it if your shoulders are healthy and you simply want to train shoulders without a landmine.

Common mistakes with landmine press swaps

Leaning back instead of forward. On standing presses, tired lifters tilt backwards to turn the press into an incline bench. That loads the lower back and defeats the purpose. If anything, lean slightly forward.

Pressing too vertically. On the dumbbell and band options, the most common error is drifting back to a straight overhead path. Aim the weight over the front of your head, not behind it.

Letting the torso rotate. The single-arm versions only build core control if you resist rotation. If your shoulders swing towards the working side, the load is too heavy.

How to programme your landmine press alternative

Swap it in set for set. Most people do well with 3 to 4 sets of 8 to 12 reps per arm, once or twice a week, stopping a rep or two short of failure and resting 60 to 90 seconds. Pair it with a pulling exercise, such as a landmine row or a one-arm dumbbell row, so your upper back keeps pace with your pressing.

A dumbbell-only home session could look like this: steep incline dumbbell press for 4 sets of 8, half-kneeling single-arm press with a forward lean for 3 sets of 10 per arm, then a band diagonal press for 2 sets of 20. If you're buying kit, a single pair of adjustable dumbbells plus an adjustable bench covers the top two alternatives, and our home gym hub has everything else.

Recommended reads

• Landmine press: how to do it and muscles worked
• Landmine attachment: types and how to choose
• The best adjustable dumbbells in the UK
• The best cable machines in the UK
• Overhead press guide