Smart Trim feature.

A place for the community to help each other out with getting the most out of the Combine FIT, GPX or TCX files for Strava Upload Tool.
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fulmar2
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Smart Trim feature.

Post by fulmar2 »

Updated November 2025

There are two primary ways people use this tool:
  • To join multiple activities end-to-end into one continuous activity.
  • To interlace data from two overlapping files, such as combining a trainer recording with a heart-rate monitor file.
If you are merging overlapping files, the two devices almost never start at the exact same second. Historically, this meant users had to manually enter start/stop times to trim off the non-overlapping “tails” before and after the real workout. Here’s an example of the “tails” I’m referring to:

If you are doing a workout on a trainer such as Peloton, and you have a second GPS head unit recording Heart Rate (for example), you probably didn't hit the start/stop button at the same time for both devices.
If you are doing a workout on a trainer such as Peloton, and you have a second GPS head unit recording Heart Rate (for example), you probably didn't hit the start/stop button at the same time for both devices.

To make this much easier, I’ve added two Smart Trim buttons:

This is what the two smart trim buttons look like.
This is what the two smart trim buttons look like.


What the two Smart Trim buttons do


Smart Trim #1 — Concatenate activities end-to-end (“butt-join”)
Click this button when you want to stitch two GPS tracks together so they line up back-to-back without any dual recording.
Use this in cases where:
  • Your first GPS battery was dying
  • You started recording on a second device
  • The two recordings overlapped slightly
This tool trims both tracks so they connect perfectly.

Priority toggle behavior:
  • The first click prioritizes the first activity.

  • The second click prioritizes the second activity.

  • Clicking again cycles back to first-priority behavior.

Smart Trim #2 — Trim overlapping files (“tail trimming”)
Click this button when your two files overlap in time. GOTOES will automatically detect the overlap and remove the extra “tails” at the beginning and end.
This is the correct option for situations like:
  • Trainer ride recorded on Device A

  • Heart-rate monitor or power-meter recorded separately on Device B

  • You want both datasets combined into one synchronized activity
In other words: use this if the files overlap and you want them blended.

This is how the two buttons behave for smart trim.
This is how the two buttons behave for smart trim.

Hope these Smart Trim features make merging files a lot simpler for everyone! If you run into any issues or have suggestions, feel free to post them.
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