Snow season is here. Here are the 7 tips for shovelling to prevent injury.

Introduction

As we live in one of the coldest places in the world, shovelling becomes a mandatory task nature assigns to us. One study from Canada found that a 34% increased chance of death in men due to an acute heart attack can be attributed to shovelling following a snow day of 20cm or more. Another study in the United States found that approximately 100 deaths and 11,500 injuries and medical emergencies occur each year during the snow season, let alone the people who get milder injuries, such as sprains, strains, and spasms. Adopting proper snow shovelling techniques is imperative to prevent back and shoulder pain and possibly even save your life. If you suffer from muscle pains and strains from shovelling, Kefi Wellness Centre’s physiotherapist, chiropractor, massage therapist, acupuncturist, and osteopath manual practitioners are also here to help.

Here are 7 tips that can navigate you through the snow season:

1. Exercise regularly to prepare yourself for the snow season.
   Exercises can be divided into aerobic and anaerobic exercises. Aerobic activities such as running, swimming, and bicycling can be effective in increasing cardiovascular status and increase your muscle endurance. Therefore your cardiovascular system will be ready when it is needed for more strenuous activities such as shovelling. On the other hand, anaerobic activities such as weight training can help improve muscle strength so you are strong enough to lift the snow from one area to another.
2. Always warm up before shovelling.
   Light elastic band exercises can kick-start your muscles in preparation for the shovelling activity. Muscle groups that are particularly important to warm up include the muscles of the arms, back, and legs. Some light jogging and running up and down stairs are also helpful to warm up the whole body. You must warm up to the point that you notice some sweat just starting to come out from the forehead, and your breathing and heart rates are slightly increased. Warm-up also includes stretching the arms, back, and leg muscles for at least 10 minutes. Have questions regarding how to warm up properly? You can also consult our physiotherapist or chiropractors for proper exercises to warm up your muscles before shovelling activities.
3. Use ergonomically engineered shovels.
   Choosing a proper shovel is essential to facilitate appropriate movements during shovelling. The shovel should be light, and the lever arm should be short and optimal enough for you to hold. Contact Kefi Wellness Centre if you have a question about choosing ergonomic shovels.
4. Use proper shovelling techniques.
   One hand should grab the handle, and the other should hold as close to the tip of the shovel as comfortable. Push the snow when possible rather than lifting. If lifting the snow from one place to another is necessary, you can bend your knees and use your thigh and hip muscles instead of using your lower back muscles. Always walk the snow over instead of twisting and tossing to protect your shoulder. Consult our physiotherapists in our wellness centre if you have any questions regarding the proper shovelling techniques.
5. Take breaks.
   Take frequent breaks during the session, and don’t overdo it. Allow your muscle to recover and regain optimal breathing and heart rhythm. Drink water so you can stay hydrated and prevent overheating.
6. Stop shovelling immediately when things go wrong.
   Listen to your body for any signs of a cardiovascular event, such as shortness of breath, chest discomfort, pounding and irregular heart rhythm, and other possible heart attack symptoms. If you feel any sharp pain in the muscle or are unable to move a joint, you likely have sprained and strained the ligaments or the muscles.
7. Avoid shovelling.
   If you are inactive, don’t exercise regularly, or have cardiovascular conditions, you should avoid shovelling all along. Consult your family doctor to see if shovelling is safe for you before you start your shovelling.

Generally, for an active person, shovelling is a good workout that can burn approximately 400 calories per hour. Therefore, mastering proper shovelling techniques can be a win-win for cleaning up your driveway and giving you daily exercise.

Even though all precautions are correctly followed, you might still feel muscle pain the next day. Since your muscle just had a workout, there will be lactic acid buildup in the muscle, which can cause pain. The lactic aid must be transported back to the liver by your blood for re-oxygenation to get rid of the pain. Therefore, increase blood flow to flush out the lactic acid to eliminate muscle aches. The easy solution is doing light aerobic exercises such as stretching, light jogging, and yoga. If the muscle aches still linger, you can visit our wellness and physiotherapy centre to get massage therapy or physiotherapy.

How a massage therapist (RMT) can help:

Our massage therapist can provide Swedish massage or deep-tissue massage to increase your blood flow, decrease muscle tension and improve general well-being and relaxation.

How a physiotherapist can help:

Our physiotherapists can assess whether the pain results from an injury in your muscle after the shovelling or from lactic acid buildup due to muscle fatigue. If there is an injury, the physiotherapists will pinpoint the root cause of it and utilize treatment modalities such as manual therapies, electrotherapies, ultrasound therapy or shockwave therapy and K-tapes in combination with exercises and stretches. Suppose the pain is caused by muscle fatigue. In that case, the physiotherapist will teach you proper exercises to stretch and strengthen your muscle in combination with deep tissue manual therapy to release the muscle tension.

How a chiropractor can help:

Our chiropractors are experts in treating lower back, shoulder, and neck pain caused by shovelling. The chiropractors will assess whether there is a misalignment in the bony structures and will correct these misalignments with spinal adjustments. Also, the chiropractors in our wellness centre can provide deep tissue manual therapy to release any muscle tensions in companion with the bonny misalignments in combination with stretches and home exercise.

Need to know which therapy suits you?

You can always speak to our therapists about your concerns by booking a free virtual consultation at Kefi Wellness Centre. Our experienced physiotherapists, chiropractors and massage therapists in Oakville are here to help you prevent injury from shovelling and reduce soreness and muscle pain after shovelling.