INTRODUCTION

What is the purpose of a new and improved shovel? What was wrong with the snow shovel my parents used? There are many different snow shoveling products on the market today that claim to minimize body strain. One of these products is the ergonomically designed snow shovel. The shovels' curved shape maintains a more upright body posture that minimizes the effort required to remove snow. Increased effort leads to increased cardiac and physical demand that can lead to acute myocardial infarction and chronic back pain. A study has shown that after only two minutes of snow shoveling the heart is working at 86% of it's maximal rate. After ten minutes, heart rate has increased to 97%. This is 1-12% above the recommended levels. (Barry F. et. al. 1995) Studies have also shown that repetitive lifting, such as snow shoveling, is a risk factor for back pain. (Sparto P. et al. 1997) Other factors that contribute to back pain and are not addressed in this study are age, gender, and body weight. (Aja D. and Laflin K. 1994)

Through the analysis, we observed the kinematic differences between the traditional and ergonomic shovel. We were interested in how the physical demands of each product play a role in cardiac and back stress.