Asda’s plans to add in-store gyms as part of a push into the growing fitness market have been held up as the supermarket battles to reverse the worst sales performance in its 50-year history.

Health Club Management revealed in June that the company was planning to partner with gym operator Total Fitness for the venture, with concept drawings suggesting the proposition would be entirely class-based.

The first site was expected to open in Swindon, while plans were also mooted for a nationwide rollout – in or near existing stores – depending on the concept’s success.

However, after recording its worst quarterly period of trading in the three months to the end of June, the company has placed a number of its non-core business plans on hold as part of ‘Project Renewal” – which aims to claw back customers by increasing price cuts and concentrating on core aims.

A spokesperson for Asda told Health Club Management that so far “nothing has been confirmed on any gym concepts,” while Total Fitness declined to comment.

Despite the apparent lack of action, sources say that up to ten fitness clubs could still be introduced by the end of 2016, although locations for these have yet to be confirmed.

Having launched a range of affordable workout gear earlier this year, Asda could follow in the footsteps of Sports Direct Fitness, which has cross-marketed to an already-captive audience by combining gym and retail outlets in single locations.

Asda’s arrival in the health club market would be the latest example of supermarkets seeking to embed gyms in surplus store space. Tesco previously paired up with Xercise4Less to offer an in-store gym, and later provided a community yoga space at the Tesco Extra store in Watford, while other supermarket chains have also been rumoured to be exploring in-store fitness concepts.