Snow Shoveling Tips from Shelburne Family Chiropractic

December 18, 2016 · 0 Comments

Welcome to everybody’s fourth favourite driving season, Shelburne!

Weather (pun intended) you like it or not, wintertime is here and, with the deep freeze, blowing snow and icy adventures on the road upon us, getting out that old shovel is, for many of us, a necessity.

Dufferin County winters are notorious for dumping heaps of snow on the roads of the Region and since many residents commute long distances to work, the last thing you want to do is injure yourself before you even get out of the driveway.

Shoveling out of a storm does not need to leave you feeling stiff and sore! Chiropractor Dr. Richard Magder of Shelburne Family Chiropractic is here to provide some helpful tips to help you clear your driveway without the all-too-common accompanying back, neck and shoulder pain!

Warm up before you cool down! In other words, take 10-15 minutes before you go out to shovel, get your heart rate up and stretch to prepare yourself for your workout. Also, don’t forget to take breaks every 20 minutes because if you shovel for a significant amount of time, you will likely feel neck, back or shoulder pain in the coming days. Finally, don’t forget to try and stretch for 10 minutes afterwards.
Wear Proper Footwear: Shoes and boots with solid treads on the soles will help minimize the risk of slips and falls.
Choose the Correct Shovel: Use a lightweight, non-stick, push-style shovel. A smaller blade will require you to lift less snow, putting less strain on your body. An ergonomically correct model, with a curved handle will help prevent injury and fatigue. You can also spray the blade with a silicone-based lubricant to allow the snow to slide off more easily.
Proper way to shovel snow: You want to push the snow instead of lifting and twisting. Lifting and twisting repetitively is one of the worst things you could do for your lower back. If you do have to lift the heavy snow instead of pushing it to the side, lift the shovel while keeping a neutral spine and turn to the side rather than twisting to dump the snow. Use your knees, leg and arm muscles to do the pushing and lifting while keeping your back straight. “Bend your Knees and Lift with Ease!”
Treat an Injury with Ice: If you do have back pain a day or two after shoveling, you want to use ice, not heat initially. Put the ice on for about 10 minutes off, 10 minutes on at a time because if you put heat on right away it could cause more inflammation.

If you find yourself with muscle pain or other injuries that last more than one or two days, come in and see your friends at Shelburne Family Chiropractic. We are the experts at diagnosing and treating back pain to get you back to shoveling pain-free!

Dr. Richard Magder and Shelburne Family Chiropractic are new to the Shelburne community and excited to meet everybody in the coming months. For more information on our practice and a little about us, check out our website at www.shelburnefamilychiropractic.com or on facebook or instagram.