Quick answer
Push the snow instead of lifting it, take small bites, pivot your feet instead of twisting your back, drink water and rest every 10–15 minutes, and stop the moment something hurts. In Buffalo it also pays to clear in stages while the snow is still falling: NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals give the airport 95.4 inches of snow a winter, with 10 inches or more lying on the ground on about 8 days of it. This is general information, not medical advice.
In this guide
Shoveling looks like the simplest job on the property, and it is easy to get wrong. This guide sets out the technique in the order you actually use it, with the reasoning behind each step, and with the Buffalo numbers that show how often the job really comes up.
Before you pick up the shovel
Shoveling is cold-weather lifting. The tips Mount Sinai Today publishes from Dr. Houman Danesh, who directs integrative pain management at The Mount Sinai Hospital, begin with the step most people skip: “Warm up.” The reason is plain: “Cold muscles are more likely to strain.” A few minutes of walking and arm circles indoors costs nothing.
The same guidance puts drinking water on the list from the start, not as an afterthought: “Dehydration increases likelihood of muscle injury.” Do it on a timer, not by feel.
The technique, step by step
Push, do not lift
The single biggest change you can make. Mount Sinai’s advice is direct: “And, if possible, push the snow, do not lift it.” Pushing slides the snow along the ground, so your spine is not the thing carrying it.
If you have to lift, lift properly
Some snow cannot be pushed, such as the last bank at the edge of a lawn. For those loads the page quotes the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons: “Squat with your legs apart, knees bent and back straight.” and “Lift with your legs. Do not bend at the waist.” It also warns against the most tiring habit of all: “Holding a shovel of snow with your arms outstretched puts too much weight on your spine.” Keep the load close to your body.
Never twist
Throwing snow over your shoulder turns a lift into a lift-and-twist, which is the movement the guidance warns against. The rule is two short sentences: “Do not twist your back.” and “Always pivot with your feet when moving snow to the side.” Take the extra step to where the snow is going.
Take small bites of deep snow
A foot of snow is not one job. The AAOS guidance quoted on the page: “Never remove deep snow all at once; do it piecemeal.” Skim the top layer, then the next, rather than burying the shovel to the handle.
Rest and drink on a schedule
Do not wait until you feel tired. “Take frequent breaks to hydrate every 10-15 minutes.” The AAOS line quoted alongside it is as simple: “Rest and repeat if necessary.”
Stop at pain
The last instruction is the one people argue with. “If you experience pain. Stop.” and “Do not push through it.” Finishing the driveway on a sore back is not worth it. Come back to it, or hand it over.
Choosing a shovel
Shovel reviews are a crowded genre, and we are a snow-removal company, not a tool lab, so there are no brand rankings here. What a medical source actually says about the tool is short: “Use a plastic shovel (lighter than metal) with the proper length”. Two words carry the advice. Lighter means you are lifting snow and not the shovel. Proper length means a handle that suits you rather than one that makes you stoop or reach.
In our view, because the best technique is to push, a wide blade suits open driveway and walks, while a smaller blade is easier on the loads you do have to lift. Whichever you choose, hold it standing up before you pay for it.
How much snow Buffalo really gets
It is easy to underestimate how often shoveling is a real job here. NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information publish 1991–2020 climate normals for Buffalo Niagara International Airport. Over a normal winter the airport records 95.4 inches of snow, on about 25.6 days with an inch or more falling, and the ground holds 5 inches or more on about 29 days. Month by month:
| Month | Normal snowfall | Days with 1 in. or more of snowfall | Days with 5 in. or more on the ground | Days with 10 in. or more on the ground |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| November | 7.8 in. | 2.1 | 1.2 | 0.4 |
| December | 25.3 in. | 6.0 | 5.9 | 1.4 |
| January | 26.7 in. | 7.5 | 10.6 | 3.8 |
| February | 18.1 in. | 5.5 | 7.4 | 1.7 |
| March | 14.1 in. | 3.6 | 4.1 | 1.0 |
| April | 2.5 in. | 0.8 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| Whole year | 95.4 in. | 25.6 | 29.3 | 8.3 |
Two cautions. First, these are the airport’s figures, and lake-effect snow is patchy: totals can differ a great deal from one town to the next on the same day. We explain why in our guide to lake-effect snow in Buffalo. Second, normals are averages, and individual winters vary. The National Weather Service office in Buffalo is the place to see what is coming.
Clear in stages, not all at once
The table above points to the most useful habit for a Buffalo driveway. In January, 10 inches or more of snow lies on the ground on nearly four days of an average year, and lake-effect bands can add snow quickly. Waiting until it stops can turn one manageable job into a deep, packed-down one.
Apply the “piecemeal” rule to time as well as to each shovelful: go out once or twice while it is falling and take the top few inches off, then finish when it stops. Each pass is light, and no pass asks your back to do what the medical guidance says not to. Our guide to the mistakes homeowners make clearing snow themselves covers what waiting out the storm costs you.
Where the snow goes
The last decision is the one that causes arguments with neighbours and, sometimes, with the town: where to put it. Not into the road. That rule is statewide, not a local by-law, and several Erie County towns publish it themselves. The towns’ own wording is quoted in our guide to winter parking bans and sidewalk rules across Erie County, which also says who is responsible for clearing the public sidewalk in front of your property, town by town.
Pile it where the melt will not run across your walk or your neighbour’s and refreeze overnight, and keep the end of the driveway clear enough that you can see to pull out. If a municipal plow passes after you have finished, expect it to leave a ridge across the apron; our guide to driveway markers and where to pile snow covers the practical side, and for one worked example, our Amherst snow page shows what a town plow does and does not clear there.
When shoveling is the wrong tool
Technique reduces the strain of shoveling. It does not remove it. The American Heart Association says people with heart disease or its risk factors should not be shoveling snow, and the association’s own words and the research behind them are quoted in our guide to snow shoveling and your heart. If that could apply to you, or to the person who normally does the driveway, read it before the first storm and not after.
There are plainer reasons too. A long, steep or curved driveway, a second car with nowhere to go, an apron the plow buries every time, or a winter in which you simply cannot be home at 6 a.m. are all reasons to hand the job over. We clear driveways, aprons, walks and steps across 20 Erie County towns with 24/7 storm dispatch; the residential snow removal page explains what a visit covers, and the snow removal cost guide shows what it costs.
FAQ
What is the best way to shovel snow?
Push the snow rather than lifting it, and if you must lift, squat with your legs apart, knees bent and back straight, lifting with your legs and not bending at the waist. Take small bites of deep snow, pivot your feet instead of twisting, and rest and drink water every 10 to 15 minutes. This is general information, not medical advice.
Is it better to shovel while it is snowing or after?
For a long Buffalo storm, going out once or twice while it falls and taking the top few inches off is easier on your back than clearing a deep, packed layer afterwards. Medical guidance says never to remove deep snow all at once and to do it piecemeal, and clearing in stages applies that rule across time.
What kind of shovel is best?
Mount Sinai’s guidance is a plastic shovel, which is lighter than metal, with the proper length. Lighter means you lift snow rather than the tool, and the right length stops you stooping or reaching. In our view a wide blade suits pushing and a smaller one suits loads you have to lift.
How often should I take breaks when shoveling?
Mount Sinai recommends taking frequent breaks to hydrate every 10 to 15 minutes, because dehydration increases the likelihood of muscle injury. Set a timer instead of waiting until you feel tired or thirsty.
Should I keep shoveling if my back hurts?
No. The guidance is to stop if you experience pain and not to push through it. Chest pain or other possible heart warning signs mean stop immediately and call 9-1-1; the American Heart Association’s warning signs are listed in our heart guide. This is general information, not medical advice.
Where should I put the snow I shovel?
Not into the road: New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law prohibits depositing snow on a highway, and several Erie County towns enforce it. Pile it where meltwater will not run across a walk and refreeze, and keep the end of the driveway clear enough to see traffic.
How much snow does Buffalo get in a winter?
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for Buffalo Niagara International Airport give 95.4 inches a year, with January the snowiest month at 26.7 inches. Snow lies 10 inches deep or more on about 8 days of an average year, but lake-effect bands make the totals differ widely between towns.
Sources. Shoveling technique and the quotations above are from “Four Tips for Safe Snow Shoveling”, Mount Sinai Today, which presents tips from Houman Danesh, MD, Director of Integrative Pain Management at The Mount Sinai Hospital (updated 30 June 2022). The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons lines are quoted as they appear on that page. Snowfall and snow-depth figures are the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information 1991–2020 climate normals for Buffalo Niagara International Airport (station USW00014733), retrieved 24 October 2026; the winter forecast comes from the National Weather Service in Buffalo. This article is general information, not medical advice. If you have a heart condition or any health concern, ask your doctor before shoveling.
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