The Single Best Shoulder Exercise for Men

Overhead presses are one particular of the finest moves to establish shoulder power and mass. They build up the deltoids and muscle tissues that assist the scapula, strengthening the shoulder by means of a vast variety of movement and strengthening performance both equally in and out of the gym. But they are not the single ideal shoulder physical exercise for adult males. That title belongs to the landmine shoulder push.

Why? Due to the fact even when you are mindful to crank out overhead presses with image-excellent form, one thing is ordinarily off. And even slight form flaws can inevitably direct to suffering or injury. Enter the landmine shoulder push. 

What’s the Landmine Shoulder Push?

A landmine is a exceptional power-teaching tool, produced by securing one particular finish of a barbell into a steel sleeve attached to the ground (or by wedging the finish in a corner with towels or concerning two weights). The absolutely free finish is then loaded with pounds plates and applied for resistance. 

When it comes to the landmine shoulder push, the finish is—you guessed it—pressed overhead working with your shoulders.

“What truly separates the landmine shoulder push from other overhead shoulder push variations is the pounds and shoulders’ movement route,” explains Tony Gentilcore, C.S.C.S., power mentor and owner of Main teaching studio exterior Boston. 

With standard shoulder presses, the pounds travels straight up overhead in line with the ears, whilst the landmine requires an arched movement route. As you push the pounds, it also moves ahead in entrance of you in a curved trajectory. 

Why the Landmine Shoulder Push Is So Efficient

The landmine shoulder press’ movement route is crucial mainly because it builds shoulders without the need of the dangers involved with most straight-overhead lifts. 

People dangers, which consist of shoulder and low-back suffering as perfectly as have on and tear to shoulder cartilage, all stem from popular shoulder mobility limits, Gentilcore suggests. These are typically due to a mixture of sitting, hunching around telephones and desktops, muscular imbalances concerning the anterior and posterior chain, or merely not teaching mobility, he suggests. 

The landmine shoulder push, however, doesn’t have to have previously mentioned-common shoulder mobility, because you go the pounds up and in entrance of the entire body. Translation: all of the rewards with significantly less of a danger.

What’s additional, the setup allows for urgent bigger loads than typically attainable with standard navy and overhead presses.

Pressing up and out, the shoulder is in a stronger place than urgent straight up. It also receives an aid from the upper body muscle tissues, further growing how much pounds you can cope with, explains Prentiss Rhodes, C.P.T., item supervisor with the Nationwide Academy of Sports activities Drugs. 

In addition, the landmine shoulder push is one thing of a blend concerning a absolutely free pounds and preset pounds physical exercise, Rhodes explains. Although the shoulders have to command the pounds in some planes of movement, they do not have to operate as really hard to stabilize a landmine as they do when transferring a absolutely free barbell or dumbbells.

However, the command that the landmine shoulder push does have to have is still ample to strengthen shoulder stability, Rhodes suggests, and it is crucial to aim on owning each individual phase of the physical exercise with business, packed shoulders. The overhead phase also requires a lot of stability from the core.

Last, it is also worthy of looking at grip: The landmine shoulder push is carried out with a neutral grip, positioning the humerus, or upper-arm bone, in the shoulder socket in a joint-pleasant way. A pronated grip for the duration of shoulder exercises tends to have a bigger danger of impingement and joint irritation.

How to Do the Landmine Shoulder Push with Ideal Kind

1. Attach the barbell to the landmine with the correct pounds plates and safe the load with a pounds clip. If you do not have a committed landmine readily available, you can place the finish of a barbell in a corner (produced by two partitions) or two large, significant, rubber pounds plates.
2. Stand with your ft hip-width aside, with the loaded finish of the barbell concerning the balls of your ft. (Other solutions consist of a staggered stance, bracing on both equally knees, or sitting down with your legs outstretched in entrance of you.)
3. With both equally palms, thoroughly clean the barbell shut to your upper body with your elbows pointed straight down toward the ground.
4. Holding your core and lats braced, push the pounds up until eventually your arms are totally extended. To match the weight’s arched movement route, lean a bit ahead from your ankles.
5. Pause, bit by bit lower the pounds back to your upper body, and repeat. 

“Technique-sensible, it is quite crucial to maintain the upper back flat and core engaged, and not permit any dipping into the low back,” suggests Roger Earle, C.S.C.S., C.P.T., co-creator of Bodyweight Education: Steps to Accomplishment. This prevents pounds from dumping into and hurting the lower back while also blocking any ahead rounding by means of the shoulders. Try out to maintain your legs, torso, and arms in one particular very long, straight line during the overall physical exercise.

As a progression, you can check out the landmine shoulder push from a fifty percent-kneeling or split stance place, urgent with one particular arm at a time (with the opposite leg ahead). This will aim on unilateral power and set a larger desire for stability on the shoulder and rotator cuff muscle tissues. It will also train the core’s anti-rotational power and obliques to a large diploma , Rhodes notes.

How to Integrate the Landmine Shoulder Push into Your Exercise session Regime

The landmine shoulder push can in good shape seamlessly into any exercise routine. Based on your programming timetable, you can increase it to total-entire body, upper-entire body, force, and shoulder-unique exercises.  

If the shoulder push is one particular of several overhead urgent movements in your arsenal, contemplate teaching it two to a few situations per 7 days. Nonetheless, if you also carry out a variety of shoulder presses with absolutely free weights or equipment, integrating it into your exercises even as soon as a 7 days can be very valuable. 

The appropriate load for you is likely to be quite particular person, and dependent on both equally your targets and shoulder overall health. Due to the fact the landmine shoulder push is a multi-joint go, you can load it with a fairly large-rep highest to hone in on maximal power. For case in point, check out 4 sets of 6 reps or five sets of five reps. 

You can also use average or light-weight weights and bigger reps to prioritize muscular endurance or to maintain your danger of injury at a minimal if you have cranky joints or a background of shoulder difficulties. Take into account every thing from three sets of twelve or fifteen reps to 4 or five sets of 8 to twelve reps. The heavier you go, the earlier in your exercise you must strike the go. 

And even though the landmine push doesn’t desire the utmost shoulder mobility, it under no circumstances hurts to train it. Complete a few minutes of drills these as wall slides, serratus anterior slides with a foam roller, or shoulder rotations just before using keep of the landmine.

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