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I'd say stick with the program and, as has been suggested, use your first marathon experience as a guide for the next.
I'm training for my first marathon and am now at about forty mpw with a sixteen mile long run. One thing I did was to research all the programs, average 'em out and fit the mileage into my schedule. I also focused on intermediate programs because I've prior running experience, though not at the marathon level. Having run 10k's, I looked for programs that started at the 10k training level I was used to.
I'm beginning to believe, however that one needs to attain a certain level of fitness for this to work. I know there are programs that'll take you from 0 to 26.2 in five months, but I think it takes many months to establish an appropriate base. Galloway used to recommend, I believe, three months at thirty mpw and twelve mile long runs each week BEFORE you start marathon training.
And while things may feel great now, it's my experience that things get tougher past the ten mile mark. I had a two-month, thirty-mpw base, with a ten mile long run when I started "training." At twelve miles, the long run started to get tough, it took two tries to do fifteen, tomorrow the goal is eighteen. If it's warm and muggy, I know I'll crash at ten.
Anywho, I've taken a conservative approach, upping my miles about ten percent a week and I've stayed injury free. Sure, there have been times when I felt I could run forever, but if I'd met my goal I went home. There were also plenty of days when I was in survival mode at a shorter distance.
Stay the course. The important thing is to finish this one, learn, and do better the next time.
Good luck and have fun!
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