Zwift Compatible Heart Rate Monitor
Kathy Douds
The JetBlack Heart Rate Monitor seamlessly connects via Bluetooth and ANT+ with advanced dual-band wireless chip technology. The universal-fit chest strap design contours your body with the soft strap. The JetBlack Heart Rate Monitor is accurate, plus one of the most comfortable and lightweight options available.
I had problems at first with the heart monitor because it came with no instructions. I didn't realize you had to strap it on for Zwift to recognize it. There is also a little plastic tab you have to take off to allow the battery to connect. Once I strapped it on Zwift recognized it right away and it is working fine now.
\nLet's start with the basics: In the context of sport, it is a wearable device that can read your heart rate data. It will then transmit the data to a device, like a smartphone or a bike computer, that lets you see it in real time and record it for later analysis.
Recently, optical sensors have become more common, especially in multi-sport offerings. These work by shining a light into your skin and measuring the variance in blood flow. While both systems rely on physical contact to gather their readings, optical sensors tend to be used in arm- or wrist-based systems where the variance can be seen.
One problem with this is that a smartwatch is rarely worn as tightly as an elasticated chest strap and as such optical systems tend to be more prone to issues over rough terrain or when running, as bumps can briefly break the all-important contact between skin and sensor.
If you want to run a hybrid system, smartwatches will often have the ability to monitor your heart rate independently using the optical sensor on the back, as well as pair with a dedicated HRM strap for more accurate in-sport measurements.
Heart rate is often a rider's first introduction to structured training - perhaps beyond 'perceived effort' or a hill and a stopwatch - and it should always remain a key part of the picture, no matter the amount, intensity or type of training an athlete is undertaking.
Within the context of cycling performance, the best heart rate monitors are regularly overshadowed by the best power meters. These are better for monitoring your training since they offer a more immediate and consistent measure of physical output. However, even with a power meter, heart rate should never be ignored.
We, cyclists, can sometimes have an insatiable thirst for data. Speed, power, cadence, and even blood glucose (see our Supersapiens review if you've missed this phenomenon) can be monitored alongside heart rate. All of these sensors will ultimately need to be connected to something that can translate the raw data into something more visually palatable, which is usually your smartphone or a cycling computer. Most fitness equipment can connect using ANT+, which is a Garmin-created protocol. However, rarely will a smartphone, tablet or laptop use anything other than Bluetooth.
Fortunately, most heart rate monitors will have the capability to do both ANT+ and Bluetooth transmissions simultaneously, allowing you to hook up wirelessly to your cycling computer of choice and non-ANT+ devices like your laptop or tablet at the same time without a dedicated adaptor.
IP ratings stand for Ingress Protection, and the two subsequent digits represent protection against solids and liquids respectively. The first digit, representing protection against solids like dust and dirt is a rating between 0 and 6. The larger the number, the better the protection, while an X means it hasn't been tested. The second digit, representing protection against liquid ingress - ie water - is a rating between 0 and 8, and again, the bigger the number the better.
ATM ratings focus solely on waterproof pressure rating. They are most easily defined by multiplying the number by 10, to get the depth at which your device can handle pressure. For example, a device with a 5ATM rating can sustain pressures equivalent to what you'd find in water at a depth of 50 metres.
If you run or swim then a heart rate monitor can do more for you than just measure your heart rate, it can monitor your stride length, vertical oscillation, cadence, and even your swimming pace and form.
Of course, whether you actually need these features is a question to ask yourself, since smartwatches can often do the same, smartphones can often handle the running metrics, and some running shoes offer these added features. It all comes down to what you need and what you already have.
When considering chest strap heart rate monitors, if you are particularly sweaty then make sure you get something that is easily washed. The control unit of most chest straps pops off, and keeping it clean will save you from salt corrosion. Most devices recommend being hand washed after each use, and then a trip through the washing machine after around seven uses. However, since the control unit on Garmin's HRM-Pro is fixed, this needs hand washing each time. Of course, it goes without saying that different rules apply to smartwatches.
For the basic funciton of tracking your heart rate, this common question is easily answered with 'any of them,' since they are all technically Zwift compatible. However, beyond connectivity, there are some considerations that make some better than others for Zwift and the world of indoor cycling in general.
As touched on above, chest-based heart rate monitors are usually more accurate than optical wrist-based monitors, so if you're after accuracy, make sure any heart rate monitor you use in Zwift is chest-based.
Next, riding on any of the best smart trainers is always a sweaty affair, even if you set yourself up in a freezer, and as such corrosion resistance is a more pertinent issue than for riding outdoors.
Furthermore, Zwift and other indoor cycling apps can require a multitude of sensors transmitting simultaneously. While all are compatible, if you're running a particularly complex data setup then make sure you opt for something with both Bluetooth and ANT+ to help avoid unwanted interference issues.
Our pick as the best heart rate monitor for Zwift is the 4iiii, because alongside being secure, comfortable and accurate (in my testing), it can also act as a Bluetooth bridge for your power meter or your smart trainer. This means instead of connecting multiple devices to your laptop, potentially reaching your limit or causing interference, you can send all the data in one stream, reducing the chance for dropouts.
Sure, the size and weight of something you're going to need to carry on your wrist or your chest is important. You obviously don't want a 3kg house brick strapped to your chest whilst you're trying to run or ride. However, the reason we've not mentioned it in our guide or product recommendations above is that the differences are so small that it's not worth comparing.
A heart rate strap that weighs 19g vs another at 21g won't be noticeable, nor will one that's 8mm thick compared to another at 10mm. Metrics that make more sense to compare are things like battery life, ease of adjustability and how securely and comfortably they stay in place when worn.
HRV stands for Heart Rate Variability, but what does it mean? It's a common misconception that your heart beats at a perfectly regular pace, and by that, I mean if your heart is beating at 60bpm, it isn't beating exactly once per second. According to Stephanie Shell, a Senior Physiologist specialising in recovery at the Australian Institute of Sport, the time between each beat might differ by between around 20 and 200 milliseconds.
HRV, or Heart Rate Variability, is the measurement of the irregularity in these intervals. We have a detailed deep dive explaining what is HRV, but the basic overview is that this is directly tied to our body's autonomic nervous system, and that a larger HRV number (compared to our own baseline) is a good indication of being well-recovered and ready to take on more training stress.
In each of the product recommendations above, I've rated how easily the heart rate strap can be adjusted. Many will only need adjusting every few weeks as they loosen or go through the wash, but if a heart rate monitor is complex to adjust, it can often lead to it being too tight or too loose. You can bet that the one time you find it's slightly too loose is when you're already midway through a ride, and you don't want to have to strip your layers off to be able to adjust it to prevent it from slipping down and becoming a belt.
As part of my testing, I spent time fitting and adjusting each of the straps in turn, making notes to compare how easily it could be done, whether it could be done one-handed, or whether it baffled me more than trying to free a pair of tangled headphones.
Let's start with the basics: In the context of sport, it is a wearable device that can read your heart rate data. It will then transmit the data to a device, like a smartphone or a bike computer, that lets you see it in real time and record it for later analysis.