Olga (12 page)

Helping the Scientific Community
My First Visit to McGill University

It all started in Lahti, Finland the year I turned 90. The World Masters Athletics Championships were held July 27-August 11, 2009, where some 10,000 athletes aged 35 to 100 years
participated.

Dr. Tanja Taivassalo had come to Finland to cheer on her 70-year-old father who was running in his first marathon. As a runner herself, she was astonished to see me, this 90-year-old athlete, run fast enough that the wind was gently blowing my hair back. When she saw me doing my thing and go on to win eight World Records, she became curious both personally and professionally. She invited me to McGill University for study and research. Does one say “no”? Of course not. Besides, no one could be more curious than I. At the age of 90, why did I still have the energy and stamina that I had as a young 50-year-old? Where was my strength and energy coming from? It was a mystery even to
me.

Dr. Taivassalo is an associate professor at McGill University’s Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education. She explained to me that her area of research is the mitochondria, the power source of the body’s cells involved in healing and growth. Her subjects are usually young people who suffer from a genetic disease that makes them so weak they can hardly walk around the block. She explained that some researchers see aging as a kind of mitochondrial disease, eventually robbing the aging population of endurance, strength, and function. Was there a way to keep those energy-producing mitochondria from shrinking as we age? Perhaps by studying me, she could help
others.

Her research partner and husband, Dr. Russell Hepple, is an associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology, Physical Education, and the Department of Medicine (Critical Care Division). Dr. Hepple studies muscle fibers, and he hoped that what he would find in me might challenge the current wisdom that all old people will inevitably lose valuable muscle fibers as they
age.

Over several days, I gave my body over to medical science, and I allowed them to test me for muscle mass, strength, and endurance. They actually had to get special permission to test someone who was over 85 years of
age.

Day 1: Dr. Hepple delivered a 1 ½ hour lecture entitled “Exercise Pathophysiology — Physiology of Aging”. We then proceeded to the Montreal Chest Hospital where lung and heart ECG rhythm-function testing was done. The doctor then scheduled me for a body composition scan (bone density and maximal muscle strength) to take place after
lunch.

That evening at the Finnish Lutheran Church, Canadian Friends of Finland, Dr. Taivassalo led a presentation on physiology, and I spoke about my athletic career and demonstrated my finger and sponge ball exercises. (You will learn these wonderful exercises in the next
chapter.)

Day 2: At the Montreal Chest Hospital, I underwent exhausting testing on the treadmill for peak aerobic exercise capacity. Dr. Hepple worked me to my fullest potential until I could not continue. In the transparent plastic cubicle (similar to a telephone booth), my chest function was monitored by specific deep breathing through a mouthpiece, which checked my heart rate and blood pressure. Blood sampling was done concurrently by a study physician to ensure that the amount of blood that was withdrawn in intervals was not going to affect my
health.

The day after the treadmill test, I was taken to the free-weight gym at McGill University. I lay down at the bench press, and Dr. Hepple and the other researchers started adding weights to the ends of the bar. Although I am right-handed, I discovered that I am quite a bit stronger on my left-side. By the time I was on the sixth rep of my bench presses, it was so quiet in the gym you could hear a pin drop! The young men in the gym stopped exercising, and they were staring at someone who could have been their grandmother bench press 60 pounds without too much
effort.

Day 3: My first assignment was to address a class of 100 undergraduate students enrolled in the Exercise Pathophysiology and Aging Program. These young minds knew that many elderly individuals do not engage in any sort of exercise or physical activity as different systems in the body decline in function. I spoke about my experiences in track and field, including my times and distances for the various events, the types and levels of competitions, what endurance hurdles I have and will continue to face, my training routine, and the times and distances between my first place results and the results of the second place
finishers.

The doctor performed a muscle biopsy for specific study on muscle fiber type, function and ability to regenerate. Dr. Horme Morais injected my left thigh with a freezing solution, and when it took hold he made a small scalpel incision in my quad. The first muscle sample was not great, and I could see Dr. Taivassalo and Dr. Hepple try to hide their disappointment. But Dr. Morais went a little deeper and, eventually, plucked out two beautiful pieces of raw, red muscle each about the size of a pea. Someone said it looked like sushi, which made me laugh because sushi is a food I never, ever eat and now definitely will never try! They froze the muscle sample in liquid nitrogen, and a grad student rushed the specimen to a lab at the University of
Montreal.

They analyzed a biopsy of three pieces of my muscle, and a technician declared that, “This is the healthiest muscle I have seen in my life. This muscle could belong to an 18-year- old!” Imagine, 91-year-old muscle! I presented him with one of my gold
medals.

This was the last day of testing. What an experience to be involved in this study. In the end, the researchers determined the following: “Aerobic capacity is very good and it is equivalent to a 60-year-old. As well, Olga has exceptional muscle fibers that allow her to excel in power
sports”.

Power sports! Before the age of 77, I didn’t know what that term meant. I was never a serious jock as a young girl, and later on I was too busy teaching and raising my children to take part in any sports. But when I discovered track and field in my late 70s, I experienced a sense of joy I had not felt in a very long time. My athletic persona had percolated below the surface most of my life, certainly during those years back in Saskatchewan, as a girl and a teacher, where baseball and walking had kept me in shape, but I never expected to become an athlete whose abilities warranted scientific investigation, especially in my late 70s. The athlete in me had risen to the surface, and I greeted her with open
arms.

During all the testing, the doctors had made an interesting discovery. Scientists say fast-twitch muscle fibres are essential in sports such as sprinting, which requires short-duration explosive movement. I seem to have some similar muscle fibre for sprinting because I have world records in 200m, 400m, 800m, but not in 100m. Likely not quite that fast a twitch for
100m.

According to Dilson Rassier, a muscle physiology expert and associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education at McGill University, fast-twitch muscle fibres are blessed with good genetics. Fast-twitch muscles contract and fatigue quickly. They’re used primarily for short duration, highly explosive movements like sprinting, throwing, and jumping. I do all that in my competitions, and I don’t mind that I don’t twitch fast enough for 100m: for me, my jumping and throwing events are twitching fast enough. I thank my mom and dad and, of course, God for blessing me so
abundantly.

The following is from the paper documenting the experiments written by Dr. Taivassalo and her research
team.

“The benefits and results from this Study and Research may provide the medical community (neurologists, cardiologists and pulmonary doctors) with valuable information to better diagnose future patients presenting with similar symptoms and exaggerated cardiovascular and ventilator exercise responses. Furthermore, it will provide the scientific community with a better understanding of regulatory mechanisms within muscles that link oxygen delivery to utilization. This study may also provide the medical community with information about ways to design exercise training protocols to improve muscle mitochondrial function and normalize the exaggerated responses in patients with muscle disease or elderly individuals” (Taivassalo et al,
2010).

My Second Visit to McGill Study and Research

I was very happy to be of use to the McGill research community, and I agreed to return to Montreal for a follow-up session. Since they lacked my other siblings to compare their results, they could gain important data by comparing results from the 2010
experience.

During the second week in October 2012, the Kinesiology Department at McGill University was celebrating its 100th anniversary with the theme “Actively Moving
Forward”.

Proudly wearing my McGill
jacket.

Day 1: Dr. Taivassalo invited me to attend the anniversary banquet. I was honoured for being “an exemplary role model”. The evening’s guest speaker and McGill alumni, Mike Babcock, shared with us how it felt to win an Olympic Gold Medal as coach of the Canadian hockey team at the Vancouver 2010 Winter
Olympics.

Day 2: Early Sunday morning, my assignment was to use the starting pistol to start the marathon. With the gun nowhere to be found I was given a foghorn
instead.

Day 3: On Monday October 15, I received the schedule for the rest of the week. It resembled the schedule for my first visit in 2010; however, more comprehensive testing was anticipated. There would not be two sets of results to
compare.

As we age, heart, lung, and muscle function decline in people, especially for those in their 60s and 70s; consequently, a need exists to focus on people in their 80s and 90s and to study their exercise
response.

During this second visit, I underwent an ECG as I rode a stationary bike as hard as I could. They measured the cardiac output which gauged how much my heart had to pump. They also did a full body composition scan, using a DEXA machine, which took an accurate snapshot of how much bone, muscle, and fat my body
contains.

My muscle and brain were scanned with an MRI machine. They took blood samples to look for, among other things, markers of inflammation, which happens when the body is trying to repair itself, and for chemicals like BDNF, a secreted protein that helps protect and grow the
brain.

This was definitely a more comprehensive testing regime than in 2010 and also more exhausting and challenging. They tabled the results of the VO2 kinetics, VO2 peak and Quad biodex and biopsy tests. For me, the hardest and most interesting test was the cognitive assessment test. It was a rush reflection of somewhat similar tests I had taken in my 30s. I struggled and persisted and survived. In the tester’s estimation, they may not have been good results. If I had more time to reflect and get adjusted, then I might have done better, but these tests were done instantaneously. A test is a test with
criteria.

In 2010, I was the sole subject of the testing, but this time I had company. Also participating in the study were Christa Bortignon (75 years of age) from West Vancouver, B.C., Colin Field, and Arthur Kimber (both 76 years of age), two athletes from England who Dr. Taivassalo had recruited at the World Indoor Championships in Jyvaskyla,
Finland.

It was interesting and exciting to meet Arthur and Colin. They were both in great spirits while undergoing testing. I have known Christa for some time now, and she is a great athlete and champion in all
dimensions.

All of us considered ourselves quite privileged to have been invited to McGill University for this study and research. I look forward to a third invitation when I have been requested to return to McGill to compare results from 2010 and 2012 and from those still to be gained in
2014.

My Brain and the Beckman Institute

In somewhat the same way that Dr. Tanja Taivassalo and Dr. Russ Hepple at McGill University were peeking into my muscles, Dr. Arthur Kramer soon would be peeking into my brain. Writer Bruce Grierson needed to add some specific results from MRI and behavior tests to his book entitled
What Makes Olga Run
. Arrangements were made with Dr. Kramer, director of the Beckman Institute at the University of
Illinois.

On July 22, 2012, Bruce and I left for Illinois for some cognitive testing. Bruce prearranged the trip so that we could enjoy a little sight-seeing in Chicago, surely one of the world’s greatest cities. We settled at the grand old Chicago Hilton and then went off to explore the city. We took a boat tour down the Chicago River, toured the Art Institute of Chicago, wandered the streets, and enjoyed great
meals.

The University of Illinois is an impressive place in a small charming university town called Champaign. It is home to the National Centre for Supercomputing that happens to be right next door to the Beckman Clinic, home of North America’s most cutting-edge work in cognitive
science.

Dr. Art Kramer is an energetic, former college athlete who heads up the research facility that is home to a couple of hundred faculty and grad students from some three dozen countries. Dr. Kramer had read Bruce’s story in
The New York Times
, and he was interested to meet me and to see what kind of shape my brain was in. The Beckman Institute was the perfect place to find
out.

I was introduced to some very nice and smart grad students including doctoral student Laura Chaddock, who had arranged our visit. I embarked on a full day of testing that started at the Biomedical Imaging Center where I underwent brain scans in the MRI machine. They told me I am now the oldest patient in their
database!

I did something called a “flanker task”, which involved identifying changes in a pattern. While my brain did that work, technicians were looking at movements of blood flow in my brain. They were also interested in my response speed. The brain’s processing speed generally slows down as we age. These tests were so peaceful and calm that I almost fell asleep. Later, one of the technicians said that my brain looked like the brains of some of the fifty-year-olds she had
seen.

After a nice lunch at an Italian restaurant across town, we were driven to the Illinois Simulator Laboratory. There I undertook something called the “Street-crossing Experiment”. In a virtual reality environment, my ability to “multi-task” would be tested. Multi-tasking means paying attention to more than one thing at a time, and it is an ability that usually declines with
age.

A street scene was projected on a big screen in front and to the sides of me, and as I walked on a treadmill I seemed to be moving through that street scene. I wore headphones so I could hear the instructions from the tester. The idea was to cross the street without being hit by a car. But as I was concentrating on the traffic, I was being distracted by questions coming in my ear from the tester. Could I answer the questions and still safely navigate my way across the
road?

It felt like I was jay-walking through non-stop constant traffic of moving cars going in opposite directions at different intervals. It was scary: my wits were constantly disrupted but desperately needed; my life and safety were at
stake.

I felt desperate. I demanded that the tester shut up because she was not helping me but was disrupting my concentration in this hectic situation. She did not hesitate for a moment, and she continued to interrupt right up to the end of this grueling test. It was pretty tiring, and by the end of the experience I was sweating profusely. When the results came in, I had scored
98%.

Then it was back to the Beckman Institute and the Lifelong Brain & Cognition Lab for behavioural and memory testing. A handsome and genial young tester named Andrew put me through my paces there. I had to recall a sequence of random numbers. I had to re-tell the story that I had just heard, recalling as many details as I
could.

To test my spatial ability, I had to rotate patterns in my mind. As this was a timed test, I was off my spatial ability, and performed inadequately. Later on in the next sequence of testing, I began to relax and enjoy the tests, and I picked up quickly. I believe my mark was quite low in this behavioural testing. I will have to find out my score in Bruce’s
book.

Later on that evening, I was treated to a well-earned dinner at a local restaurant with Dr. Kramer and his wife, Laura, and Bruce. When we arrived back in Vancouver, we learned that Laura was now Dr. Laura Chaddock. Congratulations! She deserved the
honours.

While we awaited the testing, Dr. Kramer and Laura asked if they could write an academic paper about me. I feel that such tests can provide the scientific community much needed information and material that can be beneficial into the research of aging. I thank Dr. Art Kramer and his entire staff for being so kind, accommodating, supportive and, above all, professional. After the results from all of the focused games on memory logic, speed, visuals, and concentration were analyzed, the whole experience will be recorded precisely in
What Makes Olga Run
. I can’t wait to read Bruce’s
book!

My message is: motivate yourself and become active. Exercise your body to improve your health and enjoy a happy, healthy lifestyle. Prevention is your best strategy for a strong and healthy cardiovascular system. “Use it or lose
it!”

Your homework
assignment:

Never miss an opportunity to be of service to someone or something. Search out organizations that could use your
help.

Today, find ways of letting go of any fears that may be holding you back from connecting to new people, places, and
things.

Appreciate all of the blessings in life, and share your grateful vitality with others. Allow only positive thoughts and feelings to fill your heart and your
mind.

Be happy when you go for your daily walk. Smile. Breathe. Go for a swim. Go to the gym. You don’t need to do it every day. But go! You may want to alternate your routine for
variety.

Play and listen to your favorite music. Dancing is also a great sport in many ways. Action, laughter, music, and camaraderie will enrich your
life.

The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school for lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples. The nun made a note, and posted on the apple tray: ‘Take only one. God is
watching’.

Moving further along the lunch line, at the other end of the table was a large pile of chocolate chip
cookies.

A child had written a note, ‘Take all you want. God is watching the
apples’.