Workforce transformation

Legend successfully boosts employee activity levels by investing in Myzone gaming tech

Sean Maguire

The fitness industry tends, by and large, to keep fit people fitter – the challenge is adapting our offering, to appeal to and include all people,” says Myzone CEO Dave Wright. It’s a challenge that the leisure industry has long been eager to address, as obesity levels continue to rise in the UK and beyond.

As a technology company involved in the health and fitness industry, Legend recognised that Myzone’s wearable training technology and game-based platform presented an opportunity to lead by example by promoting better health and wellbeing amongst its employees, whilst creating a strong corporate team culture.

Sean Maguire, managing director of Legend Club Management Systems, explains: “We saw the Myzone initiative as a way of creating an advantage for our staff that was aligned with our corporate values. As a software provider, a large proportion of Legend’s staff are software engineers who spend their working days behind computer screens. We understood that without addressing their motivational triggers, providing subsidised gym memberships or wearable apps would not necessarily deliver the level of support required to motivate and achieve something truly sustainable.”

Social and inclusive
Making exercise social and inclusive was seen as crucial for creating staff interest and building a long term sense of community. It was with this rationale in mind that Legend turned to the Myzone platform rewards programme. The initiative provides a game-based platform and social experience in addition to bespoke and responsive user targets. By creating a personal handicap based on an individual’s maximum heart rate, greater effort is rewarded, which means everyone competes on a level playing field.

Myzone also encourages competition with other users through cloud-based challenges via a web-based account and app. Myzone effort points (MEP) leaderboards inspire individuals to train harder.

“Myzone has had a hugely positive impact on us all,” says Maguire. “It has helped propel our employees into physical activity. Overall, I’m delighted with the result.”

Real results
Through the symbiotic relationship of Legend and Myzone, many Legend staff have been transformed from infrequent exercisers to highly motivated individuals who now set and achieve their personal health goals.

Adam Brailsford, senior database administrator, at Legend says: “In addition to competing with each other, Myzone ensures that we can make good personal progress in the types of activities that aren’t necessarily easy to monitor without the belts.”

Since joining the Myzone rewards programme, Benedict Lindley, first line support engineer, has started running marathons; two star performers have logged incredible weight losses of over four stones each; and Legend’s workforce has consistently attained the average individual 1,300 MEPs required to hit the World Health Organisation’s physical activity guidelines - equating to 24,988 MEPs across the company or approximately 6,240 calories per person per month.

Through its Myzone initiative, Legend has proven that positive behavioural change can be achieved, and that community-led evolution in attitudes to exercise and fitness can be nurtured and encouraged.

"Myzone has had a hugely positive impact on us all. It has helped propel our employees into physical activity " - Sean Maguire

Myzone’s gaming tech helps to create a strong corporate team culture

Convenient fitness

University of Edinburgh opens new satellite gym to help students get and stay active

Cameron Ritchie

Known throughout the world for its comprehensive multi-sport and fitness facilities as well as its leading educational achievements, the University of Edinburgh has recently opened a new satellite gym at its Easter Bush campus south of the city.

The new 250sq m fitness facility is part of the brand new £32m Roslin Innovation Centre, which has been specifically designed to support research in the Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Agri Tech and One Health industries, and is part of Europe’s largest concentration of animal science related expertise.

Positive effects
With continual pressure on students to perform well, the positive effects of being active have been highlighted by recent research conducted by ukactive’s Research Institute, in partnership with Scottish Student Sport and leading fitness equipment manufacturer and supplier Precor. The study investigated the effects of physical activity on students’ wellbeing and the results found that almost three-quarters of active students indicated that their thoughts about their future had changed positively since taking part in sports and physical activity.

Such findings spell good news for students at the University of Edinburgh as its newly opened satellite gym, along with the existing Pleasance Sports Complex and Gym, provides them with a means of working out at their convenience, while benefiting from cutting-edge fitness technology.

The newly-opened gym offers an integrated workout experience through networked cardio, which is maintained with the new Experience Series 700 Line treadmills, EFX with Converging CrossRamps and award-winning Adaptive Motion Trainers (AMT).

Cameron Ritchie, deputy director of operations at University of Edinburgh Sport and Exercise, said: “We were so impressed by the 700 Line’s technological punching power, we’re now trialling this kit to gauge member feedback in a live environment. It’s receiving strong, positive reviews so far, particularly with the recent release of Preva 7.0 on the networked consoles, which brings popular audio and video entertainment options, including Netflix and Spotify upgrades.”

Strength and function
The Precor Discovery Strength stations, Function Training Systems (FTS) Glide and Queenax functional fitness units offer students traditional strength exercise options as well as more functional strength training. The Queenax also opens up a much broader range of classes for students, helps enhance the gym’s appeal by nurturing a community feel through group exercise and also keeps motivation high for students to continue being active.

Ritchie continues: “The Queenax is the first rig solution the university has bought and I’m pleased to report it’s going down a storm so far. The local community has been blown away by the offer overall and requests have been made for us to run classes on it. We’ve already targeted the Queenax for our Circuit Blast classes and the team is now developing a Queenax-specific HIIT programme.”

The Easter Bush gym location is convenient for those who move from campus to campus on a daily basis and ideal for a number of the university’s performance athletes – particularly those in its rowing and rugby programmes, who also study veterinary medicine. The gym is also open to staff and students studying at the main University of Edinburgh campus, giving the university community access to high quality gym facilities and group exercise programmes regardless of where they work or study.

"The Queenax is the first rig solution the university has bought and I’m pleased to report it’s going down a storm so far" - Cameron Ritchie

The new facility is located at the university’s new Roslin Innovation Centre, just south of Edinburgh

Going high-tech

Technogym brings high-tech equipment to Roehampton Club as part of £4m refurb

Simon Baker

The 2017 winner of the UK’s Best Sports Club award, Roehampton Club, is set among 100 acres of parkland in south-west London. The exclusive club features an impressive range of facilities, including an 18-hole golf course, 30 tennis courts, six squash courts, four international-standard croquet lawns, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, gym, fitness studios, and extensive catering and function rooms.

The health club forms a key part of Roehampton’s offering and, as such, a £4m investment was made to refurbish and extend the facility in 2017. Phase one involved an upgrade of the outdoor pool and phase two consisted of a redesign of the gym and studios by Sparcstudio Designers to create a beautiful space that reflected the premium positioning of the club while delivering innovative technology.

“Technogym’s top-of-the-range Artis cardio and strength equipment was the obvious choice to fit with the club’s premium feel and experience,” said Simon Baker, general manager at Roehampton Club. “Not only are the products beautifully designed, but the digital content they offer is really engaging and motivating for our members.”

VIRTUAL COACH
Members can use the cardio equipment to enjoy virtual races, outdoor simulated environments, workout programmes and a host of entertainment options including Netflix and BBC iPlayer. The Unity Mini console found on the equipment acts as a virtual strength coach to provide exercise guidance and real-time biofeedback.

“When planning the refurbishment, we worked with Technogym to gain insight into the current market trends and latest innovations. This ensured that we created a facility that had broad appeal for the widening demographic of our member base,” said Baker. “It was important that we provided a variety of products that offer great choice for our members, as well as being effective and versatile tools for our personal trainers.”

The club also selected Technogym’s Skill Line athletic performance training range to complement the Artis equipment.

MYWELLNESS
Another significant new addition, Technogym’s open cloud platform, mywellness, has enabled members to track their physical activity across the club’s facilities. Members can track their workout data inside the gym as well as other sporting activities performed in the club, such as swimming, tennis and squash. By linking their account to third-party apps, such as Strava and Runkeeper, they can also record activities outside the club.

Baker said: “We believe that mywellness is the ideal platform for Roehampton Club as it creates a seamless link between the many facilities we offer to our members. Our investment shows our commitment to creating a digital member journey that enhances the member experience and supports our fitness team.”

"Technogym’s top of the range ARTIS cardio and strength equipment was the obvious choice to fit with the club’s premium feel and experience" - Simon Baker

Technogym’s Artis cardio and strength equipment is available in the gym