Power Shred in Gym guide

Welcome to Power Shred in Gym. This is your guide to getting results at all levels of the program.

‘Shredding’ or ‘cutting’ is the process of losing body fat while maintaining or building muscle, and our aim with this program is to empower you to do it safely. This is not an all-cardio shred – your primary tools will be weightlifting and nutrition, with a fat-burning boost from well-placed cardio blasts.

If you’re training at home or with limited equipment, jump to the Power Shred at Home Guide now.

Nutrition is a critical part of your success during Power Shred. Save the Nutrition handbook: regular & pescatarian or Nutrition handbook: vegetarian & vegan and come back to it regularly to make sure your nutrition is on point.

Ready to get stuck into the ultimate body recomposition workout plan? Let’s go.

The 5 key principles of Power Shred

This program has been built around a set of principles to ensure you train and get results effectively and safely.

1. Compound movements and variety
Key compound (or multi-joint) lifts deliver greater calorie burn and muscle engagement, while a mix of supporting exercises targets more muscle groups to build a well-rounded physique.

2. Intensity
Maintaining a strong volume of lifts will maintain or build muscle while burning fat.

3. Cardio
Dedicated cardio workouts plus high-intensity finishers on select lifting days will maximize fat burn.

4. Recovery
You should recover as hard as you train. Make the most of the cool-downs and rest days within the program, and optimize your routine with the tips in our recovery guide.

5. Fuel
This is a sustainable, safe shred program. Our Nutrition Handbook will help you to calculate your daily calorie needs, structure your nutrition and get results – while still feeling good.

How does the program work?

You can choose to do Power Shred in Gym at the training level that is right for you: Beginner, Intermediate or Advanced. (See below for help selecting your level.)

Training alongside strength experts Luke Zocchi and Ingrid Clay you can expect:

• 14 weeks of training split into four x 3-week phases, plus 2 deload weeks.
• Efficient self-guided workouts clock in at under 40 minutes for Beginner, 45 minutes for Intermediate and 60 minutes for Advanced.
• A workout mix of classic lifting, dedicated cardio days, functional movement to maintain mobility, plus heart-pumping HIIT/HIRT finisher rounds to elevate fat burn and build aerobic capacity.

Your nutrition non-negotiables

What you eat is crucial to achieving the results you want with Power Shred, so it’s essential you read the Nutrition Handbook – developed with sports dietitian Angie Asche – before starting the program.

Head to the Regular & Pescatarian Nutrition Handbook, or the Vegetarian & Vegan Nutrition Handbook if you’re following a plant-based meal plan.

Which level is right for you?

If you have bulked with Centr Power and now want to cut, we recommend starting Power Shred at the same level you completed Centr Power.

If not, follow these tips to choose a level based on your experience and strength levels.

Beginner: If you have never done weight training before, or you need to build up your confidence in lifting weights, this level is for you.

Intermediate: Consider these major strength training movements – squat, deadlift and bench press. If you can do them all with confidence and good form, select Intermediate.

Advanced: There can be a fine line between Intermediate and Advanced lifting levels. To test for your best fit, try hitting these reps and holding good form with the equivalent of your body weight on the bar:

• Squat x 12 reps

• Deadlift x 12 reps

• Bench press x 12 reps

• Pull-ups x 12 reps

If you CAN’T complete this number of reps while maintaining good form, select Intermediate. If you CAN do it with good form down to the last rep, select Advanced.

Your gym equipment checklist

This is a full gym program, so you will need gym access to achieve the best possible results. Here’s the gear your gym should have:

• Squat rack

• Barbell

• Weight plates

• Dumbbells

• Cable machine

• Incline bench

• Leg press machine

• Assisted pull-up machine

• Pull-up bar

• Smith bar

• Seated machine shoulder press

• Seated machine calf raise

• Lat pull-down machine

• Ezy bar

• Kettlebell

• Slam ball

Note: Not all equipment is used across each level of Power Shred.

Maintaining or building muscle in the gym

The aim of shredding or cutting is to burn body fat while maintaining – or even adding – muscle. So you have to stay serious about your weight training.

These are the key elements to getting results with Power Shred.

• Volume: You will maintain a strong volume of lifts throughout the program – this is not a high-rep, low-weight shred. Workouts are designed to maintain and build strong muscles, which will burn more fat. The volume of cardio also increases in each phase, challenging your body before it completely adapts.
  If you’re doing the Advanced program, your training volume will incrementally drop throughout phase 4 to account for the lower energy intake of a shredding routine.
• Good technique: Correct form is essential to maximize muscle and avoid injury. You’ll also find links to relevant tutorials in each individual workout.
• Tempo: No ego reps. Focus on lifting heavy at Luke’s recommended 3-0-1-0 tempo.
• Two reps in reserve: Rather than the traditional muscle-building approach of training to failure (the point where you can’t complete another rep), you should lift at a weight that allows you finish an exercise around 2 reps before reaching failure point – hence two reps in reserve.
  This shift is to ensure you have enough energy (and less DOMS) to complete the required cardio workouts in the program. You’ll also notice that rests between sets are shorter, balancing out muscle recovery with maintaining an elevated heart rate.
• Progressive overload: Even though this is a cutting program, you should be challenging your muscles by aiming to increase your lifting weight regularly. However, this increase may not be as frequent as it would when you are in bulking mode.
• Weights tracking: Track your lifting progress using the Weights Tracker function on your workout screen – you can log your weights and reps for an exercise as you complete it during each self-guided session.

Signs you’re gaining muscle and losing fat

Fact: the scale can't differentiate between fat loss and muscle gain. Because muscle is more dense than fat, a ‘shredded’ body might weigh the same or even more than a less muscular body.

So how do you track your progress through the program?

• Your measurements are shifting. Using a tape measure is an easy, inexpensive way to track your body composition changes.
• Your clothes fit differently. Is your outfit feeling looser around the waist and tighter around the biceps? Clothes hanging differently can be a sign you’re losing fat and gaining muscle.
• You’re getting stronger. If you're lifting heavier or able to perform more reps with the same weight, it's a good sign you're gaining muscle. You can visualize your progress using the Weights Tracker feature.
• Take photos. The mirror isn’t always accurate, because what we see in our reflection can shift based on how we are feeling. Take photos instead, using the same lighting and poses to track physical progress over time. Tip: take a photo before starting the program, then after each phase.
• More energy. If you have a significant amount of body fat to lose, your energy levels may improve as a result of body composition changes. (Yes, even when you’re eating at a deficit.) If you’re already training at an Advanced level or have a lower level of body fat to begin with, this is less likely.

Those following the Beginner and Intermediate program are most likely to see strength and muscle gains over the full 14 weeks. The Advanced program will help you fine-tune your body composition, maximizing fat loss while maintaining lean muscle mass.

Advice from the Centr experts

You’re not on this journey alone. From the incline bench to the kitchen bench, our experts have your back.

Healthy shred vs unhealthy shred: spot the signs – Luke shares everything he’s learned designing Chris Hemsworth’s body recomp workout plan for film roles.

6 mindset hacks to make your shred successful – as a former competitive bodybuilder, Ingrid knows what it takes to keep a shredding routine on track.

Can you lose fat & gain muscle at the same time? – Luke, Ingrid and Angie answer your burning questions and share the key principles of getting results.

Have more questions?

If you have any other questions about Power Shred that haven’t been answered, check out the FAQ.