The Edit — Home & Garden
How to Shovel Snow Safely: Push More, Lift Less
Push snow rather than lift it, keep loads small, take breaks and stop at the first chest pain. The American Heart Association's and the National Safety Council's advice, and 4 shovels that take the lifting out.
This guide is research-led: we have not handled these units ourselves. If you buy through our links we may earn a commission — it never changes a pick.Research-led, nothing handled. We may earn from links; it never changes a pick. How we choose
This page sets out the American Heart Association’s and the National Safety Council’s advice on shoveling snow, then the 4 shovels that do the most to take lifting out of the job, as How we choose describes. Nothing here was handled or used, and none of it is medical advice.
Best for Pushing, not lifting
Watch for Cannot throw snow
Best for Lifting with less bend
Watch for Slow on wide areas
Best for A sore back
Watch for Narrow for driveways
Best for Steps and walks
Watch for 12 inches at a time
Heavy snow can work the heart as hard as a treadmill stress test
Barry Franklin, a professor of internal medicine at Oakland University and the lead author of a 2020 American Heart Association scientific statement, says heavy shoveling can be as demanding on the heart as a treadmill stress test. In his research, heart rates passed 85% of their maximum after only 2 minutes. Cold adds to it: low temperatures can raise blood pressure while narrowing the coronary arteries. Franklin estimates that hundreds of people in the US die during or just after clearing snow each year.
Some people should not shovel at all
The heart association names the people most at risk: anyone who is sedentary or obese, smokes or used to, or has diabetes, high cholesterol or high blood pressure. People who have had a heart attack, a stroke, bypass surgery or angioplasty, Franklin says, simply should not shovel snow. The National Safety Council adds that anyone over 40 or relatively inactive should be careful, and that anyone with a history of heart disease needs a doctor’s permission first.
Push the snow; a 30-inch pusher never asks you to lift
Both organisations say the same thing: pushing snow is easier on the body than lifting and throwing it. A pusher is built for that. The Snowplow Original is 30 inches wide, so each pass down a driveway clears a wide strip, and the snow is tipped off at the edge rather than raised. It is the wrong tool once the bank at the edge is waist-high.
The Snowplow Original Snow Pusher, 30-inch
A 30-inch-wide pusher for moving snow along the ground instead of lifting it.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Type | Pusher |
|---|---|
| Width | 30 inches |
A 30-inch pusher, for snow that can be walked off the drive.
Buy it if
- A long, flat driveway cleared without lifting
Don't buy it if
- Deep snow that has to go over a bank
When snow has to be lifted, fill the shovel partway and use a second handle
The safety council’s rule for lifting is a small shovel or a partly filled one, lifted with the legs, not the back. A second grip partway down the shaft works as a lever, so you bend less for each load. Snow Joe’s shovel with an 18-inch blade and assist handle pairs a modest blade with that grip, which suits wet snow that has to be thrown.
Snow Joe Snow Shovel with 18-inch Blade and Assist Handle
An 18-inch shovel with a second handle partway down the shaft, for lifting with less bend.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Type | Lift shovel |
|---|---|
| Blade | 18 inches |
| Handle | Assist handle |
18 inches, with an assist handle for lifting.
Buy it if
- Wet, heavy snow that has to be thrown
Don't buy it if
- Clearing a wide driveway quickly
The Shovelution takes the same idea further with a strain-reducing second handle, and its listing also sells it for chipping ice. Choose it over the 18-inch shovel if your back is the main worry.
Snow Joe Shovelution Strain-Reducing Snow Shovel
A strain-reducing shovel with a second handle, sold as an ice remover too.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Type | Lift shovel |
|---|---|
| Handle | Second, strain-reducing |
A strain-reducing second handle.
Buy it if
- A shoveler who wants to bend as little as possible
Don't buy it if
- Wide, flat areas
Clear fresh powder early, and stop before you are exhausted
Fresh, powdery snow is lighter than snow that has settled, the safety council says, so clearing it as it falls means less weight on the shovel. The safety council’s other rules: don’t shovel after eating or while smoking, stretch and start slowly, and don’t work to the point of exhaustion. It counts thousands of injuries and as many as 100 deaths from snow shoveling nationwide each year.
An electric shovel clears steps, but it is still exercise
An electric snow shovel throws the snow for you on steps, decks and short walks. The cordless EGO SNS1201 clears 12 inches at a time and comes with a 56V 2.5Ah battery and charger. It is not a free pass: the heart association notes that even pushing a snow blower raises heart rate and blood pressure quickly, and studies have linked snow blowers to heart attacks too.
EGO Power+ 12-inch Cordless Electric Snow Shovel SNS1201
A 12-inch cordless electric shovel, sold with a 56V 2.5Ah battery and charger.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Power | 56V battery, included |
|---|---|
| Clearing width | 12 inches |
12 inches, cordless, battery included.
Buy it if
- Steps, decks and short walks
Don't buy it if
- A whole driveway after a big storm
Chest pain, lightheadedness or palpitations mean stop now
The heart association’s warning signs are chest pain or pressure, lightheadedness, and a racing or irregular heartbeat. Stop at once, and call 911 if the symptoms don’t ease shortly after you stop. If someone collapses while shoveling and is unresponsive with no pulse, call for help and start Hands-Only CPR. For the rest of the winter kit, see the snow shovels guide and the car emergency kit.
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