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Duplicate Workouts & Versions

Understand automatic deduplication, review duplicate groups, merge workouts, and correct version links.

The same session can arrive through more than one route—for example, a Garmin recording may also be copied to Strava. Coach Watts keeps the source records available while choosing one primary version for calendars, training load, and analysis.

Automatic deduplication

Automatic deduplication can run after new activities are imported.

  1. Open Settings → Apps.
  2. Open Ingestion Settings.
  3. Enable Automatic deduplication after ingestion.
  4. Save your changes.

This setting affects future imports only. Turning it off does not unlink existing duplicate groups, and manual deduplication remains available.

How matches are detected

Coach Watts compares signals that indicate two records describe the same real-world session:

  • Start time, normally within a narrow window
  • Duration, with extra tolerance for pause-heavy activities such as hiking or skiing
  • Compatible activity types, such as two rides or two runs
  • Similar titles
  • Limited whole-hour timezone differences between different providers

A timezone difference by itself is not enough. Coach Watts also requires stronger duration or title evidence before linking those records.

No automatic detector is perfect. Use the review workflow when you have two legitimate sessions close together or when device clocks were incorrect.

Review and merge duplicate groups

  1. Open Activities.
  2. Open the page menu and select Deduplicate.
  3. Select Scan for Duplicates.
  4. Review each proposed group and the version marked Keeping (Best Version).
  5. Deselect any uncertain group.
  6. Select Merge n Groups.

The review shows source, duration, a quality rating, and available data such as heart rate, power, GPS, cadence, detailed streams, elevation, or strength exercises. All proposed groups are selected initially, so review them before confirming.

How the primary version is chosen

The primary is the record with the most useful and complete data, not necessarily the record imported first. Selection considers:

  • Recording source
  • Detailed time-series streams
  • Structured strength exercises
  • Cycling power and training-load metrics
  • Heart rate, distance, elevation, cadence, calories, and notes

The star rating in the review is a relative data-quality indicator. It is not a workout-performance score.

What a reviewed merge changes

For a batch deduplication merge, Coach Watts can:

  • Fill missing summary metrics on the primary from another version
  • Transfer streams when the primary has none
  • Transfer strength exercises when the primary has none
  • Preserve or infer a planned-workout link
  • Mark the other records as duplicates of the primary

The secondary records are not destroyed. They remain accessible from the workout's Versions section.

Merge two workouts from the calendar

You can also merge a specific pair directly:

  1. Open Activities in calendar view.
  2. Drag the completed workout you consider secondary onto the completed workout you want to keep.
  3. Review the confirmation: the dragged workout becomes the duplicate and the destination becomes primary.
  4. Confirm Merge.

Only completed workouts can be merged this way. A calendar merge establishes the primary/duplicate relationship and preserves a planned-workout link when needed; use the reviewed Deduplicate workflow when you want Coach Watts to choose the most complete record and combine missing data.

View and correct linked versions

Open a workout and go to Versions.

  • Open a version to inspect its source data.
  • Promote to Primary swaps the chosen version with the current primary. Other linked duplicates follow the new primary.
  • Unlink removes the duplicate relationship. Both records remain in your history as separate activities.

Promote a version when another provider has better source data. Unlink when the sessions are genuinely different.

Troubleshooting

A duplicate was not detected

  • Run the manual scan from Activities → Deduplicate.
  • Check whether start times, durations, and activity types are reasonably similar.
  • If necessary, merge the pair manually in calendar view.

Two real workouts were linked

Open either workout, find Versions, and select Unlink for the incorrect relationship. Training stress is recalculated after unlinking.

I prefer to review every match

Disable automatic deduplication under Settings → Apps → Ingestion Settings, then run manual scans when needed.

Related guides

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