Halo 2 - Sports, performance & learning

The full picture

Samuel Maddock

Leading Healthcare Professional and Health Technology Researcher

Editor - Well Professor?

In this review...

• Introduction
• The Neuroscience Of Learning
• What Is Halo Sport 2?
• The User Lab Test
• Halo 2 Sport Features
• What The University Experts Say
• The Verdict...Well Professor?

Watch the Halo 2 Sports Video

We know who we are, and we know how we learn. We resign ourselves to our limits and pick up new skills or enhance existing ones in the same way we always have. Frustratingly slowly. Yet we’ve all likely witnessed that person who takes to new things with seemingly no effort; they just sit at a piano and can play, they pick up a golf club and for one moment make us believe the game is that simple, until we try again.

Most of us are not like that. We learn inefficiently, and we waste a lot of time in the process. But what if it didn’t have to be like this? What if we could redefine our limits and far exceed our expectations? It’s possible, and the answer lies with Halo Sport 2. Not convinced? Our independent academic experts Prof Steve Haake and Dr David Broome have scrutinised the evidence for you in their Lab report and given Halo Sport 2 the thumbs up.

Before we take a look at Halo Sport 2, here is a brief overview of how we learn:

The Neuroscience of Learning

Whether we are perfecting our swing or practicing a new piece of music, we need to form new brain pathways in order to learn. The scientific term for this process is neuroplasticity; our brain’s ability to develop and then strengthen connections between neurons.

Halo 2 headphones

Hebbian theory and Learning

According to the theory proposed by Donald Hebb in 1949, we learn by repetition. More accurately, he stated that an increase in synaptic efficacy arises from repeated as persistent stimulation. It explains the adaptation of our brain during the learning process and gives rise to the term synaptic plasticity. In simple terms, the more we do something the more we learn, and the better we get.

All Movement is Learned in the Same Way

Swinging a golf club, lifting weights, running, or playing the piano may seem different, but our brain learns each of these movements the same way; via the motor cortex. While the pathways in the brain that produce each movement may be different, they are all ultimately created through neuroplasticity.

Halo 2 helps with learning musical instruments

What is Halo Sport 2?

HALO SPORT 2 looks like a set of headphones, until you look a bit closer. You wear them like headphones and they do play music. But… they also apply a small electric current in a non-invasive way to the brain. This is the clever part, and it is a process known as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). The current acts on the part of your brain which controls movement called the motor cortex. This process activates neurons and increases neuroplasticity in your brain.

Halo Sport 2 is the brainchild of Halo Neuroscience, based in San Francisco, California. It creates a state of ‘hyperlearning’, strengthening motor pathways more quickly. You learn gross and fine motor skills faster. Ultimately, you learn movement faster. Halo Sport 2 is backed research. Lots of it. Over 15 years worth, and 4,000+ peer-reviewed papers to be precise.

Halo Sport 2 improves running endurance by 15% over control

The User Lab Test

Set Up. To use Halo Sport 2, you first need to pair your mobile phone with the Halo Sport 2 app. This is a straightforward process. You then select the activity that you are about to undertake. Next, you need to wet the contact points in the Halo 2 Sport 2’s primer band, and insert them into the headset. They easily click into place. After this, you simply wear Halo Sport 2 like any other pair of headphones. They feel like normal headphones and are comfortable. Except, they are anything but a ’normal’ pair of headphones…

Training with Halo Sport 2.  It’s important to note before we begin, that the use of tDCS has been deemed completely safe by Bikson et al (2016) and no serious adverse effects have been reported. Training sessions with Halo Sport 2 have two phases:

1) Neuropriming Phase: This lasts for 20 minutes and consists of stretching exercises, warming up and visualisation techniques. During this time, Halo Sport 2 is putting your brain into a peak state, ready to learn and refine movement. Weak direct currents below 2–3 mA (milliamp) are being delivered over the scalp through surface electrodes, known as primers, and they induce changes in both sides of your motor cortex.  

It can give you a slight tingling feeling on the top of your head but that does pass after a few minutes and it's not that strong, start on the lower settings if this may bother you and increase the intensity over time as you get used to it. Some of us that used Halo Sport 2 felt no sensations at all during this phase. The surface electrodes or 'spikes' can feel a little uncomfortable in the beginning (even when they are soaked through with water) but its not enough to put you off your warm up and you get used to the feeling pretty quickly.

2) Training phase: You can either remove the headset, or take out the surface electrode band and keep it on to listen to music. We kept it on and the sound quality is actually surprisingly good. The headset is a little bulky compared to other premium headphones but they are a nice snug fit and stay nice and secure for a workout.

It’s now time to begin training. Most of us that tested the Halo Sport 2 felt no difference at all at this stage. If, however, the intensity is at the higher end of the scale some of our test users felt more focused and got 'in the zone' quickly at the beginning of their exercise session. Regardless, we recommend starting at a lower intensity and building up after several uses, as you get more and more used to the product. The benefits continue for an hour after completing the initial Neuropriming phase so you have plenty of time to practice. As the brain stimulation benefits occur just 5 minutes into a session, we were able to get going quickly. 

We used it for circuit training, low weight / high rep workouts and long distance running. As none of us are professional athletes, we did notice significant improvements after the 4th or 5th time of using the headphones at the end of the first week. It is noted that semi pros or professionals may take up to 2 weeks of using Halo Sport 2 to really notice the benefits. 

Halo Sport 2 contact points can be taken out used as normal headphones

Halo Sport 2 Features

Over 17 Patents - Halo Neuroscience engineers took cutting edge technology out of the lab and built easy to use ‘Primers’ for everyone.

High-End Sound - Halo sport 2 lets you listen to music wirelessly while you Prime, or you take out the Primers and listen whenever you want. 

Halo Sport App - With the Halo Sport 2 app, you can track your progress, set reminders, and explore a range of brain training tips.

Halo Sport is safe - Over 4,000 peer-reviewed studies, covering 100,000 stimulation sessions, support the safety and efficacy of Halo Sport 2.

Halo Sport 2 can help you in three ways:

Skill.  In order to play the piano or hit the perfect drive, your brain has to send signals to the right muscles, in a specific order. With Halo Sport 2, your brain needs fewer repetitions to perfect that process.

Strength. In order to lift more weight at the gym, your brain needs to send a stronger signal to your muscles. With Halo Sport 2, your brain strengthens that signal faster.

Endurance. When you near the end of a run, your brain is sending weaker signals to your muscles, so you feel tired. With Halo Sport 2, your brain learns to maintain stronger signals throughout your run.

The Results are Impressive

Here are some of the research findings behind Halo Sport 2 and these kinds of results are not to be taken lightly. In fact, research shows that with identical training, Halo Sport 2 users reached their performance goals 5 days sooner when compared to a control group. That’s 45% faster. 

What the experts say?

We collaborate with some of the greatest minds in the industry, to provide you with a truly independent view of the products we test. The Lab is the heartbeat of Well Professor, where we do all the hard work so you don't have to. Inside you can find the academic reports of the sceince behind the product technology and see which claims are backed by real evidence.

Read The Lab Report

Halo Sport 2 will help you learn movement faster, and improves a number of exercise performance related outcomes such as endurance and strength” 

Dr David Broom, Faculty of Health and Wellbeing, Sheffield Hallam University.

Halo Sport 2 accelerates strength development by +20% over controls

The Verdict...Well Professor?

Pros

• Easy To Use
• Allows An Hour of Practice After Neuropriming
• 45% Faster Training Results For Skill, Strength and Endurance
• Backed By 4000+ Peer Reviewed Research Papers

Cons

• Headphones Are A Little Bulky
• It's Not Cheap
   

Halo 2 changes what you thought was possible. Your potential is no longer fixed... It’s time to readjust your ambitions and raise your expectations. You really can achieve more with Halo 2, whether it’s on the course, in the gym or at the piano. This is the product you need to perform better. 

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