A fridge is the worst place for a loaf. Cold speeds up the staling — the starch recrystallises fastest just above freezing — so refrigerated bread goes stale in a day where a bread bin gives you three.
Cut from the middle and stand the two halves face down on the board. The crust becomes the wrapper and the crumb keeps its moisture, which is how bakeries have always done it.
Anything past its best is not waste: a dry loaf is breadcrumbs, croutons, or panzanella. The freezer works too, but slice it first, because nobody saws a frozen loaf twice.