Trading Routine for Beginners: Daily and Weekly Review Structure
A simple daily and weekly trading review routine for beginners, with checklists, journal fields, and metrics to build consistent habits.
Why a Routine Matters
A trading routine is a repeatable plan for preparation, execution, and review. A journal is a simple record of each trade and the decisions behind it. A playbook is a short document listing your best setups with entry, risk, and management rules. A checklist is a one-page reminder of the key steps you must follow.
Beginners gain most from structure: fewer impulsive trades, clearer feedback, and faster learning. The routine below keeps things simple while building the habits that support consistency.
Daily Routine: Plan, Trade, Review
Pre-market (15–20 minutes)
- Scan your watchlist and mark key levels: prior day high/low, session open, obvious support/resistance.
- Note major scheduled events (earnings, economic releases) that could add volatility.
- Pick one or two A-setups for today. Define your trigger, stop area, and first target.
- Write a short plan: what you want to see, what invalidates the idea, and maximum risk per trade.
- Review your checklist aloud to set intention and reduce drift.
During the session
- Trade only predefined setups. If it’s not in the playbook, pass.
- Wait for the trigger (the exact condition that means “go”). No early entries.
- Size consistently according to your plan; avoid mid-trade changes.
- Place the stop where the idea is objectively wrong; predefine partials or full exit.
- Log the trade immediately after execution (don’t wait until the end of day).
Post-market (10–15 minutes)
Complete a quick post-trade review. Keep it lightweight so you actually do it daily.
- Journal fields to capture: date/time, instrument, setup name, entry/exit price, stop, result (gain/loss), screenshot, and two notes: “Why I took it” and “What I’ll do next time.”
- Process score (1–5): how well did you follow your checklist? Add one sentence explaining the score.
- Daily summary: one win, one mistake, one improvement for tomorrow.
Weekly Review Structure
Pick a fixed time (e.g., Friday after close or Sunday evening). The goal is to zoom out, spot patterns, and choose one improvement to practice next week.
- Collect stats: total trades, number of wins/losses, average gain, average loss, and net result.
- Identify your top setup and your main error type from the week.
- Replay the week’s most instructive 3–5 trades to see entries and management with fresh eyes.
- Update the playbook: refine rules for the best setup; add a caution note for the biggest mistake.
- Set a single focus for next week (e.g., “only trade pullbacks after a clear break of structure”).
| Metric | What to look for | How to act |
|---|---|---|
| Win rate | Is consistency improving week to week? | If low, tighten entry criteria or wait for clearer triggers. |
| Average gain vs. average loss | Are winners larger than losers? | If not, consider holding partials longer or cutting losers faster. |
| Best setup | Which pattern produced clean trades? | Allocate more attention and screen time to it next week. |
| Most common mistake | Where do rules break? | Create a pre-trade reminder to intercept that behavior. |
New to structured practice? See ideas in How to Practice Trading Without Risk.
Turn Insights into Reps (with a Simulator)
Progress comes from repetitions on clear rules. Use a simulator to compress experience safely and quickly.
- Pick one setup and one timeframe. Keep variables limited so feedback is clear.
- Load historical charts and practice the same checklist across 20–30 trades.
- Track just a few metrics: win rate, average gain/loss, and process score.
- Adjust one rule at a time, then run another small batch of trades to compare.
ChartingPark lets you practice on accelerated historical charts powered by TradingView, so you can run more reps in less time and objectively evaluate your process. When you’re ready, start structured practice at app.chartingpark.com.