Getting Started

• What devices is the Humon Hex compatible with?

  iOS and Android Smartphones:

  • Android (link to app on Play Store here)
  • iOS (link to app on App Store here) (NOT YET AVAILABLE)

  Garmin watches:

  Garmin watches that support connect IQ (see list here)

  • What’s included in the box?

    The box contains:

    • A Humon Hex device
    • A strap
    • A wireless charger
    • A charging cable

    

• How do I wear the product?

  Place the Hex on the mid-thigh (quadriceps muscle group) directly on the skin and secure the device by tightening the velcro straps. No need to tighten the straps too much, but make sure the Hex isn’t loose.  Do a quick test by jumping up and down with the device on your leg and if it doesn’t slip off, you are good to go!

  

• How do you fasten the strap to the Hex?

  1. Hold the device face down (you should be able to see the 5 clear windows).
  2. Take one end of the strap and with the Velcro facing outwards and loop the tag through the opening on the side of the hex.
  3. Do the same with the other end of the strap. You’re all set!

  

• How do I turn on/off the Hex?

  To turn on the Hex, hold the power button for 1 second.

  To turn off the Hex, hold the power button for 2-3 seconds.

  LED colors:

  • Blinking red: The Hex is on and not recording
  • Blinking green: The Hex is on and recording
  • No light: The Hex is off

• How do I charge the Hex?

  To charge the Hex:

  1. Plug the micro USB side of the cable in the wireless charger.
  2. Plug the USB-A side of the cable in your computer or any other suitable outlet USB power supply.
  3. Place the Hex on the wireless charging puck with the Humon lettering in contact with the puck (5 clear lenses facing up.)

  LED Indicator:

  • Solid red: The charger is on but the Hex is not charging
  • Blinking green: The Hex is charging
  • Solid green: The Hex is charged
  • Blinking red: Error- try lifting the Hex up and placing it back on the charger

  Note that the Hex Charger has a USB-A passthrough port on it, allowing you to “daisy chain” another USB powered devices from your Hex Charger, such as your phone.

  

• My first workout with the Hex

• Quick Star Guide

  DEVICE OVERVIEW

  

  1 Hex Button: A long press on the Hex button turns the Humon Hex on/off.

  2 LED indicator:

  A blinking red light indicates the Humon Hex is on but not paired and not recording.

  A solid blue light indicates it is calibrating.

  A blinking green light indicates the data is broadcasting.

  3 Detectors: The detectors are used to determine your muscle oxygen levels.

  4 Strap wings: The strap wings are used to attach the strap to the Humon Hex.

  5 Strap: The strap is used to strap the Humon Hex on your thigh.

  6  Micro USB Cable: The cable is used to power the wireless charging base.

  7 Wireless charging base: The wireless charging base is used to charge the Humon Hex.

  HOW TO ATTACHE THE STRAP

  1 Slide the end of the strap through the wing so that the Humon logos are aligned as shown. Repeat this on the opposite side.

  2 Slide the unit on your thigh and tighten so it is comfortable and will not slide off.

  CHARGING THE HUMON HEX

  1  Plug the micro USB end of the cable (the small side) into the side port of the wireless charging base.

  2 Plug  the large end of the USB cable into your computer or charging block.

  3 Place the Humon Hex on the wireless charging base upside down so that the detectors are facing upricht. The LED on the charging base is:

  Red when the charger is plugged in.

  Blinking green when the Humon Hex is charging.

  Solid green when it is fully charged.

  STARTING A WORKOUT WITH THE MOXZONES APP FOR HUMON

  1  Download the Moxzones App on the Google Play Store (soon as well on the Apple App Store)

  2 Turn on the Bluetooth setting on your smart-phone.

  3 Long press the Humon Hex to turn it on and follow the instructions in the Moxzones App to complete the process and start a workout.

  CHOOSING THE CORRECT WORKOUT TYPE FROM THE MOXZONES APP

  1 Once your Humon Hex is paired, press ”next” on the Moxzones App to access the activity types screen and choose your activity accordingly.

  2 Select the correct workout type from the list:

  Interval workout:

  Choose “Interval” mode if you plan to do a workout with high-intensity bursts of 2 minutes or under followed by a recovery phase.

  Endurance workout:

  Choose “Endurance” mode for low to medium intensity workouts over longer durations.

• STARTING A WORKOUT WITH THE GARMIN DATA FIELDNote: Not all Garmin devices are compatible with the Humon Hex. For a comprehensive list please visit https://apps.garmin.com/ and look under the Moxzones data field.1 Download the Moxzones data field to your Garmin device from the Garmin Connect IQ store.2 Add the Moxzones data field to your screen. To do so, select the Moxzones data field from the list of Connect IQ apps installed on your device.

  3 Turn your Humon Hex on with a long press.

  4 Strap the humon Hex to your thigh.

  5 Double tap the Hex button to begin the calibration process. The LED will turn blue. Once the Hex is calibrated, the LED will start blinking green and the date will begin broadcasting.

  6 Once broadcasting, you can start the workout from your Garmin device. You will see your muscle oxygen percentage and colored training zone on the Moxzones data field automatically appear.

  7 After you’ve finished your workout, double tap the Hex button to stop broadcasting. The workout is stopped when the LED starts blinking red.

• UNDERSTANDING THE DIFFERENT TRAINING ZONESThe Humon Hex will provide personalized training zones to identify your limit and optimize your workout intensities.Green (steady state): When the oxygen delivery and consumption in the muscle is balanced, meaning the athlete is training at a sustainable pace.

  Orange (approaching limit): When the muscle begins consuming more oxygen than what is being delivered, meaning the athlete is nearing their body’s limit.

  Red (limit): When the muscle is consuming significantly more oxygen than what is being delivered, meaning the athlete is training at an unsustainable pace.

  Blue (recovery): When the oxygen delivery is greater than the consumption in the muscle, meaning the athletes muscles are recovering.

  ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

  Please visit our website  and our social media pages  for training tips, FAQ and additional resources.

About the Humon Hex

• Can heart rate monitors be paired to the Humon app?

  The Moxzone app is currently compatible with bluetooth heart rate monitors. We do not support ANT+ heart rate monitors at this time.

  Known compatible heart rate monitors:

  – Polar

  – Wahoo

• What is the battery life of the device?

  The Humon Hex has a 12hr battery life.

• Is the device one size fits all?

  Yes! The strap that comes with the device was designed to fit a range of athletes; however, if you would like to purchase a smaller or larger strap, feel free to email us at info@humon.es

• Can the Hex be connected to multiple devices at the same time?

  1. The Hex uses BLE and ANT+ to send data to smart devices. So yes, you can record your workout on a smartphone (using BLE) and see the data on a Garmin watch (using ANT+).However, you can’t pair the same Hex with two smart phones.

• Is the Hex waterproof?

  The Hex is designed to be IP54 rated. This standard states that:

  Water splashing against the enclosure from any direction shall have no harmful effect

  What this means is that it will be resistant to sweat during normal use, OK to use in rain, however for it is recommend to avoiding showering with the Hex on, and definitely not submerging it. We have designed the Hex to a higher standard than this, but are still working through this certification.

About my Purchase

• What do I do if my device is defected?

  Shoot us an email at info@humon.es and we’ll solve the problem right away!

• What do I do if something is missing in the box?

  We apologize if this happens! Email us at info@humon.es and we’ll fix the problem right away!

• What do I do if I have a problem with my order?

  Email us at info@humon.es and we will get right back to you!

Wearing and Caring

• Can I wear the Humon Hex under tights?

  Yes! As long as the Hex is in direct contact with the skin and positioned on the working muscle.

• How often should I wash the Hex?

  We suggest washing the Hex using a damp cloth with soap whenever you see fit. Also, wash the strap by hand as well.

Shipping and Returns

• Do I have to pay a shipping fee to purchase the Hex?

  Yes, with prices varying depending on the location it will be sent to.

• International shipping

  We do support international shipping to some countries but do NOT cover import and customs fees. You will be responsible for those.

• Is the Hex sold in retail establishments?

  Not currently, but soon. If you are a reseller and would like more information, please email info@humon.es

• What is the return policy?

  You will have 15 days to return your order (if it has not been opened).

• Does the Hex have a warranty?

  Yes, there is a 1 year warranty on the product!

• Can I only purchase the strap of the Hex?

  Yes, email us at info@humon.es!

Using the Moxzones Smartphone App for HUMON

• How do I connect the Hex to the Moxzones Smartphone App?

  1. Download the Moxzones app from the Google Play Store (Apple App Store  (will be available soon).
  2. You need to register by entering your email address and password.
  3. Finally you need to choose and purchase one of the subscriptions; you need to go to the www.moxzones.com page and log in with the same data entered in the moxzones app. If you have not registered yet you can register now.
  4. After having purchased a subscription, the request will be received by our team who will inform you via email when your subscription is activated and ready to be used both the app and the web platform.

  To connect the Hex to the Moxzones Smartphone App:

  • Turn on the Hex by holding the power button for 1 second (you will see a red blinking light by the power button).
  • Ensure Bluetooth is enabled on your smartphone.
  • Open your Moxzones App on your smartphone and enter your  username/password.
  • Click on “workout”, choose the type of exercise, choose the type of training “Interval” or “Endurance” (See the article “Endurance vs. Interval vs. Incremental mode” which explains more about what the different types of training mean. ) and press “next”, press on the name of the device you want to pair-  it should be green before pressing and turn red when paired.
  • 
  • If you choose to record data from a Bluetooth compatible heart rate monitor press the button “pair your hrm bluetooth-“
  • If you want to see your distance you have to click on “activate GPS”.
  • Click on “next” and the screen with the green “START” button appears.
  • Click on “START” to start the exercise.
  • The Humon’s LED turns blue while connecting and flashing green when connected.
  • How do I stop a workout?
    1. To stop your training and view your data, you have to slide the gray field of the watch to the right and a new gray field “End training” will appear below the graph. Click here to end the recording.
    2. On the next screen you can rate the difficulty of your training between 0-10.
    3. By pressing “next” another screen appears where you can write down comments and click “Finish”. Now the data is being recorded.
    4. TIP: we recommend recording the recovery portion of your workout with the Hex (and waiting until the blue zone turns back to green).
    5. Take off the device (DO NOT TAKE DEVICE OFF BEFORE ENDING THE WORKOUT).

• SmO2 Display Views

  Once you’ve started a workout and you see your SmO2 % value and graphical representation of the data.

• Profile Page

  Click the “profile” tab at the bottom of the app to input information about yourself, such as height, weight, age, and gender.

Using the Humon Hex with Garmin

• How do I install the Humon Garmin Data Field?

  To add the Moxzones Garmin Data Field to your Garmin device, download it using Garmin Express, the Garmin Connect iOS app or the Garmin Connect Android app and install to your Garmin device.

  Note: do not use any other similar muscle oxygen data fields with the Hex. Make sure to download and use the Moxzones Data Field only.

  To add the Moxzones Garmin Data Field to your screen, follow the instructions for your particular Garmin model.  For example:

  Customizing the Data Screens

  You can show, hide, and change the layout and content of data screens for each activity.

  1 Hold the menu button
  2 Select Settings > Activities & Apps.
  3 Select the activity to customize.
  4 Select the activity settings.
  5 Select Data Screens.
  6 Select a data screen to customize.
  7 Select an option:

  • Select Layout to adjust the number of data fields on the data screen.
  • Select a field to change the data that appears in the field.
  • Select Reorder to change the location of the data screen in the loop.
  • Select Remove to remove the data screen from the loop. 8 If necessary, select Add New to add a data screen to the loop.

  You can add a custom data screen, or select one of the predefined data screens.

  Note: do not connect to the Hex through the Garmin settings screen.

• How do I see the Hex data on my Garmin?

  To see the Hex data on the Garmin data field, the workout on the Hex must be started. To do this you must:

  1. Be wearing the Hex on your quad
  2. Turn the Hex on by pressing the button once. The LED next to the button should be blinking red.
  3. Double click the button on the front of the device. You will see the LED on the front go from blinking red (not connected over BLE), to solid blue (calibrating), to blinking green (acquiring measurements).
  4. Once the Hex is blinking green you should be able to see the SmO2% on the Garmin watch data field.

• Viewing my data on Garmin Connect

  After syncing your data collected using the Moxzones Data Field you can view it on Garmin Connect. The Moxzones Data Field will provide hemoglobin concentration (accurate to 0.01 g/dl) and hemoglobin percentage (accurate to 0.1%).

  Hemoglobin Concentration in g/dL

  The g/dL value in Garmin is the hemoglobin concentration in the blood, as opposed to what the Hex really measures (in the muscle). Garmin requires that this data/units give the concentration in the blood, so we have to make an approximation to do this conversion. What is more important when looking at this hemoglobin concentration data is the directional change during a workout.

Muscle Oxygenation (SmO2)

• What gives our muscles energy?

  1. Our muscles need to be constantly supplied with energy during physical exertion, and this energy comes from two main components: sugar and oxygen. Oxygen is carried throughout the body by red blood cells by binding to a protein in the cell called hemoglobin. The circulation of oxygenated blood throughout the body is a cyclic process – when we take a breath of air in, the lungs help transfer oxygen from the air so that every hemoglobin is full of oxygen. This is oxygenated hemoglobin, or oxyhemoglobin. When the red blood cell circulators to a muscle during physical exertion, it becomes deoxygenated hemoglobin, or deoxy-hemoglobin.

• What does the Hex measure?

  1. The Hex measures muscle oxygenation (SmO2) by shining light into the muscles and detecting the amount of light reflected back. Light in the near-infrared wavelength range is used by the Hex to penetrate the muscle and is either absorbed or scattered by the tissue. The wavelengths of light are chosen specifically to be sensitive to the absorption of oxy-hemoglobin (HbO2) and deoxy-hemoglobin (Hb). By measuring how the light is absorbed, the concentrations of HbO 2 and Hb within the muscle can be found. The SmO2 is then calculated by taking the ratio of HbO2 to the total hemoglobin (HbT = HbO2 + Hb). 

• What is muscle oxygen saturation?

  Muscle oxygen saturation, also known as muscle oxygenation or SmO2 , represents the balance
  between oxygen delivery and oxygen consumption in the working muscles. When an athlete engages in activities, several physiological responses can be observed including; increasing, steady or decreasing Sm02.

  • Increasing Smo2 = greater muscle oxygen delivery compared to consumption.
  • Steady Smo2 = balance between the muscle oxygen being delivered and consumed.
  • Decreasing Sm02 = greater muscle oxygen consumption compared to delivery.

  Remember: SmO2 values vary depending on the muscle group and individual.

• What does increasing SmO2 mean?

  When you see the SmO2 trend going upward, more oxygen is being supplied than consumed.
  This is typically observed during low intensity activity (including a recovery or a warmup). When the blue zone is shown we classify this to be the “recovery” zone.

  

• What does decreasing Sm02 signify?

  When the SmO 2 trend is goes downward, oxygen is being consumed faster than it is being supplied. This is typically observed during high intensity exercise, such as sprinting or High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). This decreasing trend is classified as orange zone (approaching limit) and red zone (limit).

  

• What does a level SmO2 trend mean?

  When the trend in SmO2 is flat, there is a balance between the oxygen being supplied and
  consumed. This reflects a ‘steady state’. We typically experience steady state during moderate intensity activities such as long slow biking or running. This steady state is classified as the green zone.

  

• What are typical SmO2 values?

  SmO2 levels can vary greatly depending on the individual’s fitness level and the type of workout. However, we’ve compiled a list of SmO₂ data from over 1000 workouts and here are the average SmO₂levels:

  Average 63 ± 10%

  Maximum 72% ± 10%

  Minimum 52 ± 17%

  This is different than SpO₂ values that a pulse oximeter measures, which are usually in the 90-100% range. This is because SpO₂ measures oxygen supply, while SmO₂ captures utilization.

  The change in SmO₂ throughout a workout is particularly important to understand how hard you are pushing yourself.

• Why is my SmO2 going up when I’m pushing hard during an exercise?

  It’s super important to remember that the Hex is measuring the SmO2 in one muscle location. So there may be times when you are working out and the trend in SmO2 is not agreeing with how hard you’re pushing. Think about where you are wearing the Hex (likely the quadriceps muscle group) and what other muscles you may be using. For example, you could be walking up a very steep incline and engaging your calf muscles much more and the SmO2 in the quad doesn’t change much. Or if you have experienced an injury in the past and tend to overcompensate during some activities by using certain muscle groups more than others, that could also explain it. Either way, feel free to email us at info@humon.es if  you want to talk more about the specifics of your measurements!

Zones

• What do the different colored zones mean?

  The Hex classifies the muscle as being in one of four zones:

  1. Green (steady state): when the oxygen delivery and consumption in the muscle is balanced, meaning the athlete is training at a sustainable pace.
  2. Orange (approaching limit): when the muscle begins consuming more oxygen than what is being delivered, meaning the athlete is nearing their body’s limit.
  3. Red (limit): when the muscle is consuming significantly more oxygen than what is being delivered, meaning the athlete is training at an unsustainable pace.
  4. Blue (recovery): when the oxygen delivery is greater than the consumption in the muscle, meaning the athlete’s muscles are recovering.

  These zones can be used to pace yourself and manage training intensities when your train!

• Endurance vs Interval vs Incremental mode

  Choose “Incremental” if you want to identify your body’s threshold. You will need a treadmill or a stationary bike.

  Cycling:

  • Start cycling on a stationary cycle ergometer at a very low power (something that feels like minimal resistance, like 30 W) for 4 minutes
  • Increase the wattage by 30 W every 4 minutes
  • Cycle until you absolutely can’t push any further (when you reach voluntary exhaustion)

  Running:

  • Start by running on a treadmill at a very slow pace for 3 minutes
  • Increase the speed by 0.5 mph every 3 minutes
  • Run until you can’t push any further (when you reach exhaustion)

  Choose “Interval” Mode if you plan to do a workout with high-intensity bursts of 2 minutes or under followed by a recovery phase.

  Choose “Endurance” Mode for anything else.

• How is the training feedback determined?

  The Hex determines zones based off of features present in the optical signal, which include the muscle oxygenation (SmO2), oxygenated hemoglobin concentration (HbO2), and de-oxygenated hemoglobin (Hb) concentration.

  These zones are NOT found by assuming fixed SmO2 thresholds. Humon’s algorithms analyze the balance between the oxygen supply and oxygen demand in the tissue and classify the state of the muscle as being in 1 of 4 zones:

  • Steady state
  • Recovery
  • Approaching limit
  • Limit