Boxing Runs Family Deep
By: Liz Gonzales
Updated: December 16, 2012
"I started getting into it when I was younger, with my dad," explains Flores. "He was a boxer so I kinda looked up to him a lot."
Then life takes over.
"I got up to almost 300 pounds," says Anthony Flores.
It was then that he decided he wanted to go back to what he knows best.
"He said 'dad I want you to train me,'" says Michael Flores. "I said 'OK, you better be ready.'"
So the training began.
"I wake up in the mornings and I go run two miles and about two o'clock I'll go to my dad's house and work out for about an hour and a half," says Anthony. "And then at five I'll come over here and I'll run my three miles and then do my workout until about seven and then at night I'll run another two miles."
And everything developed from his father's wise words.
"He said if I want it, I gotta work hard for it."
To his father, it was all about preparing him for what was to come.
"I knew what he was facing. So I trained him a lot harder because he was going to be facing men," says Michael.
What he didn't know was how much their once distant relationship would change.
"When I started getting older, boxing brought us together. Now I see him like every other day at least and it's a lot better now," explains Anthony.
And it's all thanks to boxing.
"I didn't really realize the steps I was taking was something that he would be trying to do for himself," says Michael.
Now Anthony has to take his own steps to accomplish his dreams.
"I want to go to the Olympics real bad. And after that hopefully pro."
With a strong father/son team, realization may be closer than they think.
