Using FitnessSyncer with GoldenCheetah
GoldenCheetah reads activity files from a folder on your computer. FitnessSyncer can keep that folder filled automatically, so the activities you record anywhere reach GoldenCheetah without you exporting anything by hand.
How do I set this up?
- In FitnessSyncer, add a Dropbox, OneDrive, or Google Drive destination and point it at a folder you will use only for this. Choose FIT as the file type.
- Install that service’s desktop application on the computer where you run GoldenCheetah, and make sure the folder is stored on the computer rather than left in the cloud. This step is the one people miss, and the settings differ by service, so it has its own section below.
- In GoldenCheetah, open Athlete, then Settings..., then the Auto Import tab, and add the folder. Auto Import is configured per athlete, so if you keep more than one athlete in GoldenCheetah you will need to do this for each of them.
- Restart GoldenCheetah. Auto Import runs when GoldenCheetah starts, so your activities appear after a restart rather than the moment they arrive.
How do I keep the folder on my computer?
All three services can leave a file visible in the folder while the file itself is still in the cloud. GoldenCheetah cannot read a file like that, so the activity simply never appears. Each service calls the setting something different:
- Dropbox: right click the folder and choose Make available offline.
- OneDrive: right click the folder and choose Always keep on this device. This overrides Files On-Demand for that folder.
- Google Drive for desktop: either switch Google Drive to Mirror files, or right click the folder and choose Available offline. The default streaming mode leaves the files as placeholders.
Should I use GoldenCheetah’s own Cloud Sync instead?
No, the Cloud Sync is for GoldenCheetah’s own files between your computers and not for importing data like this.
Will the same activity be imported twice?
No. The export folder keeps growing, because FitnessSyncer never removes what it has written, but GoldenCheetah keeps a copy of every file it has imported in the athlete’s own imports folder and skips a file it recognizes.
If you also sync the same activities into GoldenCheetah another way, such as directly from Strava, you can end up with the same ride twice. The simplest way to avoid it is to pick one route in and turn the other off.
What about weight and other body measurements?
This setup carries activities only. GoldenCheetah imports body measurements through its own measures importer, which is a separate feature and not something the activity folder feeds.
Since GoldenCheetah supports CSV, you can use Cloud CSV files for this information, but it is not as automated as activities.
