For residents of Cook and Lake Counties, the average snowfall turns our area into “a Winter wonderland.” While snow is beautiful, understanding the risks involved in snow removal helps seniors feel more confident and prepared for winter safety.
The combination of freezing temperatures and intense physical exertion creates a “perfect storm” for the cardiovascular system. According to the American Heart Association, shoveling snow is uniquely taxing for two reasons.
When you breathe cold air and your skin is exposed to the chill, your blood vessels constrict. This is a natural response to keep your core warm, but it also spikes your blood pressure and forces the heart to work harder to move blood through narrower “pipes.”
Unlike walking or cycling, shoveling involves “static” exertion— grasping a heavy handle and holding your breath as you lift. This can cause a sudden, dramatic increase in heart rate and blood pressure, which can trigger a cardiac event in individuals with underlying (and often undiagnosed) heart disease.
Data from the Center for Rural Policy and Development highlights that Cook County’s 65+ population has grown significantly over the last decade. Many of these residents are active and healthy, yet the transition to North Shore winters requires a new “safety accounting.” A single shovel-full of wet snow can weigh between 15 and 20 pounds; moving a driveway’s worth can mean lifting several tons in under an hour.
If you are over 60 and must clear your own snow, medical professionals recommend some guidelines. Never walk out the door and start tossing snow. Spend five minutes inside, doing light stretching or walking in place to gradually get your heart rate up.
While moving snow, push rather than lift whenever possible. Use a “pusher” style shovel with a broad blade. One type, known as a sleigh shovel, is a high-capacity snow removal tool designed to be pushed rather than lifted. It looks like a giant, deep-dish bin or hopper with a large U-shaped handlebar. You may find them at your local hardware stores.
Instead of the traditional “scoop and throw” motion that strains the back and heart, you use your body weight to slide the sleigh across the snow, collecting a large volume in the bin, and then “glide” it to the edge of your driveway to dump it.
For the over-60 demographic in places like Cook and Lake Counties, the sleigh shovel is often recommended as the safest manual alternative to a snowblower. The design allows you to move massive amounts of snow—sometimes 3–4 times more than a standard shovel—without ever lifting the tool off the ground. Because it relies on a steady “walking” push rather than the explosive, “isometric” lifting motion of a traditional shovel, it keeps the heart rate more stable. It reduces the risk of sudden spikes in blood pressure. The goal is to move the snow to the edge of the driveway without ever breaking the ground-to-waist lifting plane.
You don’t need to move it all, all at once. Shovel for 15 or 20 minutes, then come inside to warm up and hydrate. Fatigue leads to poor form, and poor form leads to injury. While shoveling, watch for the warning signs. Chest pain is the obvious red flag, but cardiac distress in older adults often manifests as “atypical” symptoms such as sudden shortness of breath, lightheadedness, or pain radiating into the neck, jaw, or back. If you feel these, stop immediately and call 911.
In a region where the nearest hospital might be an hour or more away, the safest “shoveling technique” is often a phone call away. All our communities in the Arrowhead have robust networks of plow contractors. The financial cost of a season-long plow contract is a fraction of the cost of an emergency room visit or a long-term back injury. For the over-60 cohort, choosing the plow over the shovel isn’t a sign of slowing down—it’s a calculated decision to ensure they are around for the thaw.
Finding help for snow removal is a crucial safety step for residents over 60. The following agencies are great resources for seniors seeking help with snow removal.
• Care Partners of Cook County, 218-387-3788, website carepartnersofcookcounty.org.
• North Shore Area Partners, (218) 226-3635, website nsapartners.org, serving the Silver Bay, Beaver Bay, Finland, Isabella, and Little Marais areas.
• Community Partners, (218) 834-8024, website: communitypartnersth.org, covers the southwest end of Lake County.
