I have found that doing situps is a good start to exercising my abs and gaining muscle definition. I plan to do it like this: Week 1: 1 set of 10 situps Week 2: 2 sets of 10 situps Week 3: 3 sets of 10 situps And add an abdominal exercise every 3 weeks starting with 1 set, then 2, then 3. But I noticed that the last time I did it with just abs alone, after 1.5 months, I started getting pain while exercising and it took a year for me to not have that pain anymore. I think it was from a muscle imbalance where my abs were getting bigger, causing more strain on my back which stayed the same possibly in combination with overtraining. So if this year is my year where I get serious about my abs, how often should I take a break from daily exercises(I find I can do abdominal exercises daily without soreness) and how long should such breaks be? Should I exercise my arms and do cardio during those breaks or just not exercise? Another big question I have is what exercises I can do for my back that are not complicated, are bodyweight, and don't involve hyperextension(the last time I exercised my back, it was by going from the cobra position to the downward dog position and doing a set of 10 caused pain from hyperextension but not a pulled muscle)? Since I am exercising my abs, I am looking primarily for lower and mid back though if those also exercise my upper back, that's fine.
