Half Marathon Houston 2025 - Race Recap

[@billprocter942]

Thank you for sharing your half with us. You are an inspiration!

[@juliogol80]

Was waiting for this one. Great video, super entertaining and informative. Great training and a great race. Keep at it!!!

[@kofuzi]

Thank you!

[@HeyWendyVanessa]

I see my back from the shakeout run! Weee honored to be a small part in your race day weekend!

[@kofuzi]

great to run with you!

[@MidLifeRunner]

Love these training videos

[@kofuzi]

Thanks Andrew!

[@keithc1264]

Your videos are the best. The shots, the music, the analysis, the highs & lows of the sport, and the humanity of people. I’m enjoying Runna. It pushes me harder than I would push myself. I will likely pr by 5-20 minutes in the marathon this spring (depending how much I want to risk it and go for what Runna thinks I can vs play it safe and hit the pr with the tank not quite empty).

[@runningoneddie]

Congrats on your finish and time. I definitely enjoyed watching your journey with the Runna app. Love seeing the sites of McHenry County. I used to run there regularly about 15 years ago, so it brings back a lot of memories.

[@robertburpee9473]

Congratulations Mike on this vlog, your race and your commitment to this channel, it was a joy to watch. 😎🏃‍♂💪

[@kofuzi]

thanks for the feedback! glad you enjoyed it!

[@ulisesdeleon1116]

Great video as always! Hope to see you in Houston again!

[@tri0xin]

"wasn't fully in the mood to hurt" .... well said :) ... excellent video!

[@kofuzi]

thank you 🙏

[@mnlw1363]

Houston is great- was very cold this year Great to have you visit!

[@kofuzi]

it was great to be back in Houston!

[@Johnnydodgin]

This has been an awesome series Mike, culminating in this fantastic final ep. Thanks man! 🙌

[@kofuzi]

Thanks Johnny!

[@yevinn-]

Great Series! Thanks for making these! Sorry you didn't get the PB but what a race!

[@kofuzi]

thanks for your support!

[@mark.aldergrove]

I absolutely loved this series! Would be super grateful if you were documenting your next training block - however you choose you train - in a similar way. Congratulations are in order for a great race result and pushing through the tough spots in-between!

[@kofuzi]

I've been trying for a few years now, trying to find ways to better storyteller around these training blocks. I think this is a formula that is working, and I'm excited for how it will iterate for the next time (the spring season will be full of other types of running adventures, so I'm not sure when the next dedicated training series will actually be though. perhaps for Sydney in the summer/fall)

[@michellekelsey5257]

I'm sorry you didn't hit your goal and to hear that you were struggling. This was my first Houston Half and it was definitely tough with the weather. My legs started to cramp around mile 7 and it was effort to get done but we both did it. I hope to see you at another race!

[@paulhanna8474]

Love these race recap/runners weekend videos - great to watch on this afternoon’s treadmill run! 👍🏻

[@kofuzi]

Hope you had a good run

[@the987abc]

Out of protest - yeah!!!! We all have those days 😂🙌 Always a treat watching you!!!

[@runs.long_notfast]

It's not just you. I did exactly the same on that pyramid session....I just couldn't believe there were 1200s also and went on strike 😂

[@akapantsusenpai181]

My favorite kind of running videos: race recaps

[@kofuzi]

I enjoy making them!

[@bryliang]

Love how well you use bgm, from kpop to classical in one video

[@kofuzi]

Thank you for noticing

[@Roarnwatnot]

Congrats on another race down! Loved these training update/vlog style videos, they’ve helped me get through cardio sessions on the bike while I’ve been rehabbing my knee lol

[@kofuzi]

Glad you enjoyed them! Good luck with the rehab!

[@plumbingworkz]

You are amazing. You inspire me.

[@abbyschwendler1107]

Simply said and absolutely true.

[@kofuzi]

Thank you 🙏

[@bettinapoulos7891]

Loved this recap !! Great run Ko!!

[@severiner7168]

I think the point to celebrate here is that you made it past midnight on NYE!! I feel this is a major win. Always love your videos, thank you for putting out this content for us.

[@kofuzi]

I’m about 50/50 for NYE in my 40s

[@severiner7168]

@@kofuzi Same here. If I'm skiing, it's a miracle if I make it till 10!

[@ChloeHamard]

I'm amazed at how much you managed to film whilst racing! Congrats on pushing through, I also wouldn't have been in the mood to hurt if I had been waiting around in freezing cold conditions at the start. I'd love to take part in the US race one day, Houston Half is on my bucket list.

[@kofuzi]

I hope you get a chance to experience it soon!

[@wilfredo-teyrosalesfotos]

Great job out there and thanks for the insight and knowledge after the Shake out run!

[@kofuzi]

Great to see you in Houston!

[@jenkaigaming]

Nice video! I ran the marathon there and it was my first one! I might want to try Runna out now that I built a solid base I need to do some real training/speedwork

[@joshuaroque6514]

Great race effort! I’m going F3 in Chicago tomorrow and aiming for 1:26:30 (2min PR). My Garmin Coach plan states I’m in finishing in 1:25:05 😂. Let’s see how it goes!

[@kofuzi]

love that event. I've PR'd there before. have a great race!

[@kev60625]

Did you hit what you were aiming for?

[@siddharthmallick]

Thanks for all the love for Houston marathon weekend. I do agree this is an amazing race. Don’t have too many reference points to make that comparison but you do validate it 😊. Hope to see you here next year too!!

[@kofuzi]

I hope it can fit into the schedule again next year

[@fraac]

runna is really pushing themselves to influencers, eh

[@GTE_Channel]

Solid businessmodel. Can't blaim them.

[@alwayslearning9517]

They've been doing for years with others channels. From what I've read on forums, people seem to really rate it (unless Runna infiltrated the forums as well😅)

[@GTE_Channel]

@alwayslearning9517 a friend of my uses it. I follow his workouts on Strava but can't say I see anything strange with the schedule or workout buildup.

[@seegee_01]

I don’t mind this business model if it’s a product that actually works, and Runna works. It helped me get my marathon PB in Houston last week

[@motherpupper]

@@seegee_01this!!

[@bikashsherpa2489]

Kofuzi's recap is alys 🔥

[@kofuzi]

thank you 🙏

[@RaquelSchneiderVlogs]

Congratulations Kofuzi!! Great race!

[@kofuzi]

Thank you!

[@nberkel]

Enjoyed the series, and this recap/summary. Would like to see another cycle with Runna to see if you had the same opinions on workout difficulty, mileage, etc...but I get off that doesn't fit into your plan.

[@fecardona]

Hi Mike. You should consider doing a “honest detailed review” type of video focused solely on the Runna app. You struggled (incredibly enough) and so did I, I thought it was just me. Turns out I got injured with MTSS and near stress fracture conditions, opened a customer service case with them and had to cancel my NYC marathon participation last year.

[@nberkel]

Sorry to hear of your injury. How you come off it sounds like you're blaming an app for your injury though 🤷‍♂️

[@actuallymeg]

I too have MTSS and am in a similar situation to yours after a few weeks with Runna in training for a marathon a couple months ago. There's a lot of things that go into it, so I hesitate to say it's only Runna's fault (I overestimated, and should've known my limitations whether I was making it in the workouts or not). I found the app really pushes speedwork in almost every run and while I think that works for a lot of people, I'm not sure it works specifically for me.

[@AaronEMorales]

Just looking at this video, it seems Runna just throws a bunch of stuff at the wall and makes every run too fast. Why people keep trusting these “AI” based things is a mystery. For someone that got paid to use Runna it doesnt seem Kofuzi enjoying using it.

[@global-runner]

Great video!! I also ran Houston but my experience wasn’t as good as yours. Congrats on a great race!!

[@kofuzi]

Thank you!

[@gassiusdave]

that coffee cup tho.. -_- Great informative video! Thank you for sharing your race insight!

[@kofuzi]

has good acoustics and caffeine

[@peter7371]

So nice to have to back in my home city man! Amazing video as usual and love that Houston feels like home to you. For those who haven’t done this race, What would you tell them about it? I kept hearing from new friends that hadn’t done it before (and have done majors for example) that this was just as well organized as any big marathon and very great when it came to pro field, expo, gear check etc! Would like to hear your thoughts! Cheers!

[@mattheweley]

Nice work mk. I’m using runna thanks to your series, and hoping for a 1:28 in march, which would be a 3 minute pr. Thanks for another great video sir

[@kofuzi]

Good luck with your training!

[@matthewpena4169]

I enjoyed the shakeout and chatting with people before, during and after the run! Looking forward to the next one.

[@kofuzi]

Thanks for joining the run!

[@macau.friend]

I am happy to watch 60 minutes of Kofuzi just eating pizzas and bagels, but this will suffice

[@colinmeney]

I dug the style of this video.

[@kofuzi]

Thank you!

[@aarondavistx]

Oh snap! I didn’t expect to cameo in this video 🤣 (in the flashback to the other Houston meetups (14:13)

[@kofuzi]

We go back a while, don’t we!

[@aarondavistx]

@@kofuzi We do! Looking forward to crossing paths again in the future.

[@GodofConeyIsland]

love this

[@kofuzi]

Thank you 🙏

[@timbino21]

I ran the half as well, (first half) the montrose blvd stretch was definitely the hardest mentally. After the fountains crowd you don’t see a size-able one till allen prky. Was glad that the northern headwind wasn’t as bad as I thought!

[@kofuzi]

The winds could have been worse

[@siddharthmallick]

That stretch on Montrose felt so darn long! Couldn’t wait for the turn onto Allen parkway. Totally opposite of when I ran the full and I would dread the turn into Allen parkway!

[@TolunayOrkun]

Thanks for the race recap. I enjoyed it. Personally did not train specifically for this and was doing ad-hoc runs since CIM so it did show up in the results and I also had trouble getting into rhythm due to the cold. I like cool but that was a bit too cold and windy but obviously it worked for the elite well. Do you track training stress score (TSS) and Training Stress Balance or similar to that (for example STRYD has 42d RSS and RSB). Does Runna has something similar to that? BTW, you don't actually have to say Half Marathon at Houston because the HM has a different name in this case. It is officially "Aramco Houston Half Marathon". The full is called "Chevron Houston Marathon." Saying just Half Marathon is not too bad although without any context there is a possibility of mix-up with "UTHealth Houston Half Marathon and 10K" race.

[@emilianov]

You’re the man Ko!

[@kofuzi]

🙌

[@womtang]

I’m going to keep training until I can one day race with you 😂❤

[@kofuzi]

Let’s go!

[@slavasss2189]

1st january run is iconic for all run fans 😅

[@danielburton6221]

Great video!!!

[@kofuzi]

thank you!

[@MartinCharlton-ds7ro]

I’m in two minds regarding Runna - it helped get me my MV70 10km PB of 47:23 (and 1:45:15 for the 1/2 Marathon) in 2023 but I then spent most of last year injured - I’m not convinced that the AI really makes any allowance for age - I am now back running 6 days a week but am setting my own sessions and looking forward to the London Winter Run 10 km in a couple of weeks time, having missed it last year through injury.

[@kofuzi]

thank you for your feedback

[@svenja5596]

Long video yesss 🎉😄👌

[@kofuzi]

🙌

[@Thepianoman77]

I just did the Over/Under 1Ks Runna workout this week. It was hard. It was the same paces that it had you do! Not a fan haha... But I see the benefits of it for sure!

[@kofuzi]

Such a hard session

[@042766]

Runna looks extremely tough (especially for someone that's in an older bracket than you!) Doing a coopah hybrid as I'm doing LM in April, however have the Fred LeBow 1/2 this weekend. It's still cold here in NYC and not sure to race or use it as training (maybe a bit of both) tough to race it with 3 Harlem Hills and too much undulation it seems..

[@kpmcdonald1]

I think runna adjust to your pace and running

[@MrWhatthefok]

It will adjust to your level and times you put in you run for a 5/10 or half

[@alfdickinson1971]

Wicked vlogg!

[@kofuzi]

Thanks Alf!

[@cheekster777]

Thank you Mike.

[@kofuzi]

thanks for watching!

[@cheekster777]

@ 🤩

[@Stashawk]

Some wisdom for me here I think. We have very similar race paces, but I have never done any easy runs near 10 minute pace, it just feels too slow. Maybe I'd benefit from slowing down some on the easiest of runs. Anyway, good effort, congratulations and solid performance.

[@kofuzi]

You can always give it a try for a bit and see how it affects your sessions

[@AneelKarim-d3r]

Kofuzi what are your thoughts on the Nike Zoom Fly 6 is this shoe good for a marathon or Half marathon I await your response many thanks

[@kofuzi]

I have not tested that shoe

[@AneelKarim-d3r]

@kofuzi OK Thanks for your response I look forward

[@neilcarroll7258]

Congratulations great result will you continue to train with Runna?

[@Mikenight120]

I think this something that would have been nice to see in the video. Given he tested runna, would he continue to use it is a good impression of how he enjoyed and see its benefits for many runners.

[@MsTrinichic]

mastery in motion!!!!

[@kofuzi]

Thank you

[@Daviddiff4]

That montec jacket looks so nice I might have to get one

[@kofuzi]

it's fun. lots of pockets

[@stephe999]

OMG I had that same over under Runna workout this week. So hard I cheated and took a few breaks along the way. 😊

[@kofuzi]

Such a tough session

[@danjohnson9821]

Maybe worth taking another crack at a 1/2 PB at Gary Bjorkland in Duluth this coming June? You also get to cheer in the marathoners afterwards. If the weather is nice it's also fun mingling and listening to the bands afterwards.

[@kofuzi]

only if I can get Ben Johnson to pace me like he did for the full (which was my first sub 3 marathon)

[@danjohnson9821]

@@kofuzi I wish I could help pace. I've done it a few times with Cliff Bar and then Beast Pacing. However with age I'm not getting faster. Ran a 1:25:16 two years in a row, but last year slowed to 1:27.

[@saljablo2767]

Shoutout to everyone who makes that final surge at the last 50m and gets right in front of someone who was leading the entire time and ruins their finish picture lol. Happens every time.

[@kofuzi]

Should have run faster

[@musclelessfitness2045]

Nice run! I think the second 5k took you out. It was about 15 sec too fast. Don't follow your friends, follow your own pace.

[@kofuzi]

it was either stick with the pack or run alone (which I did last year and did not enjoy). I made a decision

[@blackbelt2000]

In your hotel room, do you walk in, set up the camera, turn around and walk out, then walk back in.....or do you leave your camera on the table already recording so that its ready when you come back?

[@karenflynn147]

I was wondering the same thing! So clever!

[@kofuzi]

Yes

[@kofuzi]

It’s either that or leave the camera recording when I leave for like three consecutive hours

[@ProtonElektron-e7b]

Dont't be afraid about your time. This is natural. Why? With cold temperatures below 8°C the alveoli of your lung will close a little bit, to protect themself from the cold. Means your oxigen to carbondoxid transport is a little bit limitted. PB's can not be seen under this conditions. Choose events at 12°C (maximum oxigen concentration in the air, maximum body cooling by lung and skin with less required blood stream) without wind and altitude. These condition are 100% perfect for PB's. Good luck.

[@abbyschwendler1107]

I had a similar pyramid run this week, but with way slower paces than you. It kicked my butt, but it was a good confidence boost. Id rather do that kind of run than longer faster intervals.

[@kofuzi]

Hmmm. I think I’d rather take the pyramid too

[@angguprakoso]

what type of camera did you use sir? it looks cool

[@kofuzi]

gopro, sony a6700, tamron 17-70mm, sigma 11mm, sony 70-350mm, iPhone 15 pro max

[@plumbingworkz]

Could I have your expert opinion. I do 5k park runs at around 21 minutes. Last stretch I like to sprint. Been using puma deviate nitro 2 which doesn't give me much boost and takumi sen 8 and 9 which seem to give me more... Looking at new trainers either puma nitro elite 3 or Adidas adizero adios pro 4...what are you thoughts or is there another trainer in hat would suit my runs better... Thank you.

[@kofuzi]

Neither of those are trainers (unless you and I are using that word differently), but they are each great race shoes which could suit fast park runs well (assuming your parkrun is all on pavement)

[@plumbingworkz]

@kofuzi yes my English isn't correct 🤣 thanks.

[@Lockhart2000]

Great video but why are people still measuring distance in miles in 2025?

[@kofuzi]

I'll stop using miles when the British stop caring about fast milers

[@karenflynn147]

I dig the jacket you wearing pre-race - what was that?

[@kofuzi]

Janji

[@Feanaro5503]

The white/grey camo jacket at the end is awesome. Where can I get one of those?

[@kofuzi]

It’s a snowboarding jacket I think. Montec is the brand

[@mariuszgontarczyk]

Hi . Warm tea could be served .

[@kofuzi]

There’s coffee

[@mariuszgontarczyk]

@@kofuzi I don't drink coffee, apparently it tastes different in the States?

[@danjohnson9821]

There will likely be a quiet a few runners going at your pace goal, heck I might even know one or two . ;-)

[@WheeJones]

How was he recording his lower body during the race? I am so confused

[@bsmoov7]

Clarification on the 7:15/mile. That’s not 25 seconds/mile faster than BQ pace. That IS BQ pace for age 40-44 (45-49)starting next year)

[@kofuzi]

I’m already 45. BQ pace is 7:40/mi, no? 3hrs 20min

[@hahaheslop]

Jury is out on Runna for me. Its never going to replace a human coach, its cheaper, but the app literally ran me into the ground, and I swear I got injured because of it. Still needs a lot of work. Not a fan of the aggressive marketing too, can't escape the adverts! 😡

[@kofuzi]

I don't think apps will be replacing humans any time soon. and I generally dislike with a vengeance anything with AI. but I also did my first marathon training plan using a free Hal Hidden plan I printed out at work and then stuck to my fridge (this was 14 years ago) and then my next several marathons were guided by a mixture of workouts I found on the internet and books I read (Pfitzinger, Jack Daniel). Hiring a coach was certainly an option to me, but it's not something I would have ever picked for myself at that time. Had something like this existed for me earlier in my marathoning, I think it would have been really helpful. My point in trying out Runna at this stage of my running was to see if it could make a plan that could get an experienced (albeit very much a non elite) runner to a respectable level of fitness and preparedness for a race. but I think the main audience for this is likely that slice of people who are interested in something more than a preprinted plan but maybe are too intimidated for (or uninterested in) 1-on-1 or group coaching

[@hahaheslop]

@kofuzi Thanks for the response. Yeah, I totally agree. I did a bunch of marathons using the Hanson Method. Only recently moved on to having a human coach, but for my last marathon, i used Runna (to save money), and it was an absolute disaster! Won't be going back anytime soon. 😂

[@lentil356]

Same I feel like Runna has been far too aggressive for me and ended up triggering an Achilles injury.

[@BooneTheLoone01]

Just started using Runna, and definitely helping my winter training, love myself some Runna

[@kofuzi]

happy to hear that you enjoy it!

[@MosquitoJo]

What watch do you use?

[@kofuzi]

for this race, I was using Garmin FR 265

[@lovestospooge1838]

Steevie76 what a legend 😆

[@kofuzi]

he's a real one and an OG

[@CroissantsLattesRunner]

What kinda camera setup do you have ?

[@kofuzi]

GoPro, sony a6700, tampon 17-70, sony 70-350, sony 11mm

[@1519Spring]

​@kofuzi you (autocorrect) did Tamron dirty

[@David_T]

Despite having 14k runners, I'm surprised on how empty it looks around you. Racing by yourself is always hard.

[@kofuzi]

after the marathon/half marathon split, it gets kinda quiet

[@homegrowngnome]

banana galore

[@kofuzi]

Never seen so many

[@BernieRom828]

I’ll find out how it’s 8week HM plan for me goes Feb 2nd

[@kofuzi]

Best of luck!

[@BernieRom828]

@ 1:40.48, Target 1:41. So success

[@LuisBecerra79]

Yo, what’s going on!!

[@kofuzi]

Yo Luis!

[@EvilTeacher34]

#MexicanGreetings Wait a sec, so where's the review of the app? Come on man, this can't be it....

[@piratepyle1903]

I am also using runna right now for a half im doing end of Feb to go for a sub 1:30 and I agree. This app will humble your ass real quick

[@sandroTXG]

Great video!