The Class: Shred415

Location: Milwaukee, WI

Duration: 60 minutes

Instructor: Margaux Chandler

Classpass?: No

What is Shred415?

As a long-time Barry’s Bootcamp fanatic, I get curious whenever I learn about a new treadmill Bootcamp class. Recently I learned about Shred415, a class structured very similar to Barry’s: it features four 15-minute intervals, alternating between a Woodway treadmill (my fave) and floor strength work, for a total hour long class.

Shred415 has locations nationwide, including Chicago, Denver and San Francisco, but none in NYC or LA. As part of their grand-opening special, the new Milwaukee location was offering free classes for two weeks. Naturally, I took full advantage.

The Space

The Milwaukee East Side location’s clean and minimal design feels similar to a lot of other boutique fitness studios nowadays. All white walls and floor lead to a crisp white front desk. The bathrooms and showers are fully stocked with bath products plus nice additional items like free hair-ties and tampons.

A wall of electronic lockers sit outside the studio for you to secure your items during class.

The Workout

Margaux Chandler, both the studio’s owner and a trainer, is an energetic blonde woman with hella good arm muscles and a positive, encouraging attitude. The first five minutes of class focus on warming the body up.

The First 15

She started us off with one minute of treadmill walking before we moved to a casual jog, gradually increasing our incline or speed about every minute.

By the end of the five minutes, we were supposed to have hit our “ending warm-up pace,” which Shred instructors define as “a pace you could maintain for 15 minutes on a flat road.” For me, this was about 8:00 minutes/mile pace. We slowed our pace down and did walking lunges on the tread for another minute. Then, it was go-time.

The remaining 10 minutes on the treadmill flew by for me; we did incline work with added speed resistance that left the class out of breath, but Margaux never left us working too long without a walking break.

At the end of the first 15-minute segment, we hopped off the tread and took a spot on the floor next to a bench.

The Second 15

The only equipment for Shred415 floor work is a bench and dumbbells ranging from 5 to 10 lbs. The strength focus, like Barry’s, varies depending on the day: Monday and Wednesday are Arms & Abs, Tuesday is Butt & Legs, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday are full-body. The class I attended was Arms & Abs.

The floor work started with a warm-up too, which seemed a little unnecessary given most of the class was already sweaty from the treadmill work, but I enjoyed the chance to catch my breath.

Each exercise lasted for about 30 seconds to 1 minute. We did moves like bent-over row, bicep curls, push-ups, and chest-press. Every couple of minutes, Margaux would add in some cardio work, like mountain climbers, burpees, or high-knees.

The Third and Fourth 15

The second half of the class, although not identical, mimicked the first half. By the end of the class, I felt rejuvenated and sweaty. We did a (very) brief stretch and got out of there.

Workout Summary

• 15-minutes on treadmill, including 5-minute warm-up
• 15-minutes on floor, using bench and dumbbells
• 15-minutes on treadmill
• 15-minutes on floor
• Very short stretch

Final Thoughts

The music and general environment of Shred415 is loud, energetic, and fun. I wished the floor exercises utilized more creative equipment and exercises, but they do their job. As a runner, I also wished the treadmill portion included more explosive sprinting, which towards the second running interval, I started to add on my own.

The Bottom Line

If you want strength work and cardio in one quick hour, a Shred415 class gets the job done.

Want the boutique bootcamp class experience for free and on your own schedule? Try out my free treadmill HIIT workout!