Continue to follow the prompts. To ensure your Myzone readings are as accurate as possible, enter your gender, height, weight, and date of birth. Using a mix of optical and ECG monitoring over a few weeks, there wasn’t a huge dent in battery life. From an hour run using the optical sensor, the drop-off was four percent. A 45-minute HIIT session on FIIT with the ECG didn’t really make a dent. To view battery status, it’s the same process as doing it with the MZ-3. You’ll need to head into the workout tile on the app, turn the device on and it’ll display the current battery level. If the eyes of your peers just isn’t quite enough motivation for you, then you’ll be glad to know that Myzone also employs a ranking system wherein, the more consistently you exercise, the better your status. Completing workouts will earn you MEPs (Myzone Effort Points) – a system that’s based upon recommended guidelines from the World Health Organisation – 1300 of which will you nab you iron status, then bronze, silver and so on. Something you won’t have to worry for some time is having to charge the MZ-Switch. The battery on board is good for anywhere from 3-6 months depending on usage. MyZone’s MZ-3 chest strap monitor promises up to 6 months and making use of that optical sensor on a more regular basis will have more of an impact.

Whether you use the optical or the electrical sensor is up to you – it’s mostly about personal preference. If you’re uncomfortable wearing a chest belt during certain activities, this gives you the option of wearing the monitor on your wrist or forearm. Even though the Myzone app doesn’t look quite as up to date as its competitors, I have enjoyed my time using it and I can see it being an instant hit with anyone who’s been put off exercising in the past. By keeping the social aspect at the core of its design, it’s harder to avoid that morning run or a trip to gym, knowing that your friends will see if you haven’t been putting the effort in. personalise our content for you, greet you by name and remember your preferences (for example, your choice of Last up is the wrist strap, which has a firmer feeling fabric that’s closer to what you’ll get on the chest strap. It uses velcro to secure it on your wrist and we found it stayed put and sits snug without feeling tight, which is the ideal type of fit to get good data from the wrist.The MZ-Switch isn’t only about the hardware, good though that is. You can also use the accompanying app to help motivate yourself to get fitter. Primarily, this is done via the MEP system (MyZone Effort Points), but it’s also possible to book and participate in online classes via the app or choose from a series of structured workouts to add some interest to your gym, home treadmill or exercise bike sessions. Moving things to the arm for a mix of steady and fast paced runs and mixed intensity rowing sessions, and it performed relatively well here too. For runs, it was generally one or two bpms out from a chest strap, and was generally within 4bpm on maximum HR, usually reporting a lower HR max than a chest strap. It was never identical to a chest strap monitor, but it was never wildly off to push you into another heart rate zone. It was a very similar experience to what we experienced with the Polar Verity Sense and other armband heart rate monitors from Wahoo and Scosche. We have been impressed by its unique business model, scalability, presence in the marketplace and outstanding senior management team. Before we get into our testing, we should talk about what MyZone says about the accuracy of its own tech. When you’re making use of the ECG sensor on the Switch, you can expect 99.4% accuracy for readings. When you’re using its optical sensor to measure heart rate from the arm or wrist, that drops to 95%. So still a good number, not quite the almost 100% accuracy promised by using ECG. It might not be the most comfortable position for all, but that chest strap still does the business.

Otherwise, there’s not much else to say. It would be nice if you could upload ZoneMatch workouts to the MZ-Switch itself and have it issue audible cues when moving from one zone to the next, as this would allow you to follow workouts on a run or bike ride without the need to take your phone with you. As this would have a negative impact on battery life, however, I understand why MyZone hasn’t implemented this. Originally from Australia, Mr Wright worked as a personal trainer where he met his now wife, Adrienne, before moving to the UK to start a new life together. You’re good to go and ready to enjoy the full benefits that Myzone has to offer! Make sure you allow notifications in the app to receive details of the monthly challenges and to confirm your participation.

It would also be nice if it looked a little more attractive but, if you’re concerned with that, you can always hide it under a sleeve on your forearm. When you do need to get charging, there’s a proprietary charging cable that clips securely in place to one of the button ports used to clip it into the chest strap. Once it’s in, it stays put, so there’s no worry this one is going to move out of place if you’re charging it overnight. What’s helpful about this level of freedom is that it allows the Switch to be used in a wider variety of workouts than its predecessors. For instance, when using a chest strap HRM whilst on a rowing machine, I’ve always encountered inconsistent results due to my torso being in constant motion. With the Switch however, I simply moved the device to my forearm and lo and behold, the results were far more in line with what I anticipated.