t-bar row

The T-Bar row is a unique and powerful compound exercise designed to target and strengthen your back muscles. With a landmine, you can load one end of the bar with weight plates and know that it is 100% you lifting the weight, making it the kind of back exercise that you can truly load to your full potential.

Here we will delve into the muscles worked, how to perform T-Bar Rows, benefits, common mistakes to avoid, reps and sets, how to progress this exercise, how and where to fit it into your workout plan and finally other exercises targeting the same muscle groups.

Muscles Worked when Performing a T-Bar Row

Latissimus Dorsi (Lats): Your lats are your biggest back muscles, so naturally they will be fully engaged as you pull the bar up into your chest. Strong lats result in a broader and stronger back, creating the V-shaped physique that in turn gives the illusion of a narrower waist.

Rhomboids: These muscles between your shoulder blades play a pivotal role in stabilising your upper back during the rowing motion.

Trapezius (Traps): The traps are activated, especially at the top of the exercise, as you pull the weight all the way into your chest and squeeze your back muscles for full engagement. Your traps assist by supporting the shoulder and upper back muscles.

Posterior Deltoids: The back part of the shoulder muscle plays a key role in the pulling motion of this exercise.

Teres Major & Minor: These small back muscles are often overlooked in exercise, but don’t underestimate their importance. All of the muscles in your body, no matter how small, play a significant part in your overall strength and power, as well as your everyday mobility.

Infraspinatus: The infraspinatus forms part of the rotator cuff, which supports the shoulder joint.

You can use the muscle highlighted image at the top of this page for a visual guide of the muscles worked.

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How to Perform T-Bar Rows

1. Landmine Setup: To perform a T-Bar row, you'll need an Olympic barbell, a landmine attachment, weight plates, and a V-bar handle (often attached to the cable station).

2. Landmine Position: Secure the barbell into the landmine attachment. If a landmine attachment is unavailable, position one end of the barbell into the corner of some sturdy equipment. You can also use a couple of heavy dumbbells if you can get that set up.

Be careful not to damage the floor or equipment when using a workaround solution to setting up a landmine.

3. Plate Loading: Load weight plates onto the other end of the bar. Ensure the V-bar handle is hooked around the underside of the barbell and is positioned below the weight plates.

4. Assume Start Position: Maintaining proper form is essential, especially when handling heavy loads. Stand with one foot on each side of the bar, slightly bending your knees, stick your bum out and keep your chest high.

5. Grip the V-Bar: Reach down and grasp both handles of the V-bar.

6. Form and Posture: Keep your back flat and your core tight. Lift the barbell with the weight attached into your chest through your arms, while maintaining your fixed and strong body position. As you pull the weight towards you, keep your elbows close to your sides throughout the entire movement.

7. Contract and Release: Squeeze your back muscles at the top of the movement, then slowly lower the barbell to just an inch off the floor. Then pull it back into your chest and repeat for the desired number of reps.

Benefits of T-Bar Rows

T-Bar Rows are more of an advanced back exercise, they’re preferred by experienced lifters for the fact that the bar can be heavily loaded and pulled straight from the ground. This means you can pull more weight through your back muscles when compared to other rowing exercises.

Faster Back Muscle Development: T-Bar rows are a barbell exercise, allowing for maximum loads. This will help you to build your back muscles faster.

Grip Strength: Because this is a pull exercise that allows for substantial weight loading, it doubles up as the perfect opportunity to develop your grip strength.

Improved Posture: Strengthening the back muscles contributes to better overall posture. Good posture doesn’t just help you in the gym, it also plays a crucial part in your everyday life and functional strength abilities.

T-Bar Row: Common Mistakes to Avoid

Poor Posture: Maintaining proper posture throughout the exercise is essential. Avoid rounding or sagging your back, as this can lead to painful injuries.

Incorrect Form: Performing T-Bar rows with improper form can lead to the unintentional recruitment of other muscle groups, this doesn’t just hinder the engagement of the intended muscles, it could also result in a repetitive strain or overuse injury over time.

Mind-Muscle Connection: Stay focused on the targeted muscle group to ensure you are working it effectively. If you’re not feeling it, stop and reassess your form.

Momentum: Avoid using momentum or any exaggerated body movement. You should pull the weight through your arms while engaging your back muscles. The rest of your body should remain in its fixed position.

Reps and Sets

The number of reps and sets you perform depends on your current strength with this exercise.

Beginners: Start with simply mastering the move. Keep in mind that if you’re just starting out, 3 reps is a valid set.

To determine how many reps/sets of T-Bar Rows you should start with, you first need to figure out how many reps you can comfortably perform. Then add 2, and perform that number of reps for 3 sets.

For example; let’s say you can perform 4 reps comfortably. Add 2 to make 6 reps. Perform those 6 reps 3 times over, allowing yourself sufficient rest inbetween.

Experienced lifters: You know your body and its abilities better than anyone, use your own judgment.

We recommend that you avoid performing more than 12 reps per set. If you’re comfortably performing 12 reps for up to 6 sets, it’s time to make the exercise more challenging.

How to Make T-Bar Rows More Challenging

As with most exercises, you can make this exercise more challenging by increasing the weight you are working with. Alternatively, to make T-Bar Rows more challenging, you can slow the exercise down to increase your time under tension. You can also slow down half the exercise, so pull towards you at normal speed and then slowly lower the bar back to start position in a clean and controlled movement, feeling the engaged muscles throughout.

How to Incorporate T-Bar Row into Your Workouts

T-Bar Rows belong in your back or upper body strength training workouts. This is a compound barbell exercise and so fits best towards the beginning of your workout. If you have a Deadlift, Rack Pull or other similar barbell exercise in your plan, do your T-Bar Rows after these, but before any dumbbell or cable exercises. You can learn about exercise order here.

Exercises that Work Similar Muscles to T-Bar Row

Any other row exercise complements the T-Bar Row, so you follow these up with Bent Over Rows, Single Arm Dumbbell Rows, or Seated Cable Rows. These exercises engage similar muscle groups with a different weight distribution, providing variety and effective targeting of the back muscles in general.

You can find more Back Exercises at the bottom of this page. Or you can check out our entire exercise database, broken down by muscle group here.

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