As a former Olympic athlete, Manchester's Joanne Dow has trained plenty.

An eight-time national race-walking champion who competed in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the 45-year-old city native can attest to the benefits of athletic training methods that incorporate science and technology. But as a parent and high school track coach, she has mixed feelings about young athletes following sophisticated training regimens.

"Anytime you can get the quantitative data and see gains and do sport-specific things with kids, I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing," Dow said. "But I'm not sure how I feel about the necessity of it. ... I sometimes feel like it's a little over the top."

Advanced training protocols can benefit young athletes if presented in the right context, Dow said. Programs in which qualified instructors stress proper form to build strength and prevent injury are most beneficial, she said.

A track and cross-country coach at Nashua's Bishop Guertin High School, Dow knows more about training than most high-school mentors but values the knowledge training specialists can impart to young athletes.

DOW

"Not every coach has that expertise, so if we can farm it out to someone who does, that's positive," she said.

Manchester Memorial High School boys' basketball coach Mike Fitzpatrick has referred several Memorial players to Manchester's Next Level Performance for summer training programs. Acknowledging the limits of his own training expertise, Fitzpatrick has been pleased with the results he's observed.

"I see progress on the court in practice and pickup games," he said. "If a kid's going to be devoted, he can do work on his own at a health club and do fine, but the level of knowledge these guys have is high."

Next Level Performance owner Joil Bergeron said he strives to coordinate with coaches to avoid overtraining athletes.

And at Bishop Guertin, Dow encourages athletes to pursue training programs but asks to review their plans.

Dow observes, however, that kids' access to training opportunities isn't equal, which adds to her mixed feelings on the topic.

"Some kids will be able to do this because their parents will pay," she said. "Others won't because they're working two jobs to put money away for college."