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The "six-pack" has now become the ultimate "show-piece" of a top-notch physique. And for good reason: As the level of obesity continues to rise, a lean abdomen becomes more rare.

And what is rare will always be considered attractive.

Naturally, we are all searching for the best ab exercise. Late night infomercials promise a lean flat stomach in just six minutes a day.

But you had to know it wasn't that easy.

Still you have to wonder if maybe there's a better way. Let's be honest: The sit-up is a terrible exercise. When performed with strict form, it's a little better but it's still a poor choice if your end goal is work the ab muscles.

The crunch is a little better, but still leaves much to be desired. Until recently, trainers everywhere were stuck with sit-ups and crunches. But one man changed all that and invented a far more effective exercise.

The reason sit-ups and crunches suck

Traditional sit-ups don't work the ab muscles. Instead, they tend to work the hip flexors.

Let me demonstrate:

I want you to make a fist. Focus on squeezing the fist as tight as you can. If you truly squeeze as hard as you can, you'll notice that your biceps will tense up as well.

This is an interesting phenomenon.

When you tense a muscle, the surrounding muscles tense up as well. When trying to isolate the ab muscles this is a problem.

You see, when you do a sit-up or a crunch your ab muscles tense up. But this in turn also activates your hip flexor muscles.

Your hip flexor muscles will overpower your ab muscles and you will never truly exhaust your abs. Luckily, there's a solution.

Try this:

Flex your bicep. Now flex your tricep on the same arm. Now flex your bicep and your tricep (on the same arm) at the same time.

You CANNOT do it. This is because these muscles are antagonistic pairs. When one muscle is flexed the other must be relaxed. Now, the antagonistic muscle of the hip flexor is the hamstring. When the hamstring is tensed the hip flexor must be relaxed.

So how do we flex the hamstring while working the abs?

Enter Professor Vladimir Janda inventor of the Janda Sit-up. Janda discovered that you can disengage the hip flexors by working with a partner. Simply get in the sit-up position feet flat on the floor.

Have a partner place his/her hands on your calves. Now, pull on your partner's hands as if you were trying to drag your feet closer to your butt. Your partner should resist. Now, continue to try and drag your feet towards your butt and with your partner still resisting try to sit-up.

A lot harder, right?

If you can't manage even a single rep then start at the top of the movement and work out lowering your torso as slowly as possible.

But What If You Don't Have A Partner?

Odds are, you won't have a partner available to hold your calves. But don't worry, I have a solution. And best of all, this solution does NOT involve buying any over-priced ab gizmos.

I'm going to give you a battle-tested, simple solution and all you need is an ordinary, household broomstick!

Here's what you do:

Put the broomstick across the frame of a doorway and (while in a sit-up position) hold the broom with your calves.

Pull on the broomstick with your calves to flex your hamstrings and then go through the sit-up motion.

Many people can only do a few Janda sit-ups at first. But continue to work hard at the "Janda" and you will see noticeable strength gains in about two weeks.

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Matt Marshall is the author of the Home Workout Report. To see this article with actual pictures that demonstrate the exercise, visit http://www.averagewhitedude.com/the-day-the-sit-up-died/22/