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Beyond clairvoyance, Freshley brings extraordinary discipline to his training, a practice developed in his youth. Drafted into the Army after college, he became one of an elite 15 on the all-military pentathlon team. (General George Patton was once a member.) Training was 10 to 12 grueling hours a day of riding, swimming, fencing, shooting and running. Even his current regimen would stagger most people: four or five swims a week, sometimes including a 1-mile ocean race, two 20-mile bike rides, two weight-lifting sessions, as much as 3 hrs. of yoga and Pilates, and a lot of calisthenics and stretches.
Freshley, who lives in La Jolla, Calif., is an apostle of swimming. "Before 50, swimming is optional," he says. "After 50, it's mandatory. Guys' egos force them to play basketball at 55 as they did at 20, and they damage their knees." A 70-year-old swimmer looks 50, he maintains, but a 70-year-old runner looks 90. Swimming lowers cholesterol and reduces arthritis pain, he says, and it has strengthened his immune system to the point that he gets barely one cold a year. He recognizes, however, that not everyone will share his devotion. "Nobody has to do what I do--pant, feel your lungs will burst--to get results," he says. "Show up three times a week and swim at 60% effort, and you'll get as much health out of the program as I do."
--With reporting by Emily Mitchell and Adrianne Navon/New York