you want to get tough, read this book:
1000 pages of dense stream of consciousness. the irish advanced military academy has students read this book to prepare them for possible violent interrogations and the mental fatigue of captivity. before i read this book, i was a dewey-eyed dough boy that could barely motivate myself to ride more than an hour in the best of conditions. by the time i was done, i rode in the snow with no gloves, i ate cytomax powder without water, and i frequently did three hour time trial efforts on rollers twice a week (always facing the wall of my basement with no tv or music allowed, and sometimes in the dark).