What to Track in Your Trading Journal for Better Results

If you’re not tracking your trades, you’re not really trading—you’re just reacting.

A trading journal is your single best tool for getting better. It shows you what’s working, what’s not, and where you’re making avoidable mistakes. But most traders either don’t keep one—or track the wrong things.

This guide breaks down what to track (and why) so your journal becomes an actual roadmap for improvement—not just a record of wins and losses.

Why Journaling Is a Competitive Advantage

Think about it:

• You take a trade.
• It wins. You feel good.
• You take another. It loses. You tweak something.
• Two more wins. Another loss. You get frustrated.

Weeks go by and you’re not sure if you’re making progress or just spinning in circles.

This is where a trading journal changes everything.

It creates clarity.

You stop making decisions based on emotions or short-term outcomes—and start making them based on evidence.

The best traders don’t just trade. They review. Relentlessly.

They know that reviewing trades with the right data shortens the learning curve. It’s how you compress years of market experience into months—without blowing up your account.

Core Benefits of a Proper Trading Journal

1. Clarity on your strategy’s actual edge
2. Awareness of recurring mistakes
3. Improved discipline and execution
4. Faster corrections and refinements
5. Stronger conviction when going live

It’s not about recording every little thing—it’s about tracking what actually helps you get better.

So let’s break that down.

What to Track in Your Trading Journal

Log with purpose. Review with intent. Improve with speed.

Here are the most high-impact data points to track:

1. Entry and Exit Screenshots

• Why it matters: Your memory is unreliable. What felt like a great setup at the time might look very different later. Screenshots give you context.
• How FX Replay helps: Automatically captures entry/exit visuals—no need to take manual screenshots.

Pro Tip: Mark up the chart with your thought process. Over time, patterns emerge in what works—and what doesn’t.

2. Date, Time, and Session

• Why it matters: Market behavior shifts by session. You may perform better during London than NY, or get chopped in Asia.
• What to analyze: Are your wins clustered in specific times? Do you make more mistakes late in the day?

Track:

• Date of trade
• Time entered/exited
• Market session (London / NY / Asia)

3. Strategy or Setup Tag

• Why it matters: You’re not just trading. You’re testing ideas. Tagging your trades by strategy shows you which setups actually deliver.

Examples:

• Breakout
• Retest
• Liquidity sweep
• FVG entry
• News fade

Over time: You’ll know which setups are worth scaling—and which are dragging down performance.

4. Market Context / Conditions

• Why it matters: A setup that works in a trending market can fail miserably in a range. Journaling the context helps explain your results.

Track:

• Market state (Trending / Ranging / Choppy)
• News events
• Time of day
• Volatility

Use this to build a filter:

“This setup works, but only when market structure aligns and volatility is steady.”

5. Entry, Stop Loss, and Take Profit

• Why it matters: You can’t improve execution if you’re not measuring it.

Log:

• Exact entry price
• Stop loss level
• Take profit target
• Actual exit price

Review Questions:

• Did I follow the plan?
• Did I move SL too early?
• Did I cut the trade short?
• Was my TP realistic?

6. Risk Per Trade / Position Size

• Why it matters: Risk discipline separates consistent traders from gamblers. Logging your size shows if you’re staying consistent—or chasing.

Track:

• Position size in lots or contracts
• Risk as % of account
• Any deviation from your plan

If your journal shows you're risking more after a loss—or shrinking after a win—that’s emotional trading.

7. Planned vs. Actual R:R (Reward to Risk)

• Why it matters: R:R is more important than win rate. Many profitable traders win 40% of the time—but their winners are 2-3x their losers.

Track both:

• Planned R:R: What you aimed for
• Actual R:R: What you achieved

Over time, this shows if:

• Your targets are realistic
• You exit early
• You give back profits

8. Result: Win, Loss, or Break Even

Simple, but don’t just log “W” or “L”.

Also include:

• Net P&L in % or $
• Total pips or points
• Commission/slippage (if applicable)

This gives you the real picture, especially when backtesting or journaling in a simulation like FX Replay.

9. Emotional State (Before, During, After)

• Why it matters: Your mindset leaks into execution. Emotions like fear, hesitation, or greed sabotage good trades.
• How to track it: Simple 1-word check-ins:

Before: Calm / Anxious / Overconfident

During: Focused / Nervous / Impatient

After: Relieved / Frustrated / Neutral

Pattern recognition here is huge. If most of your losing trades are tagged “hesitant” or “overconfident,” you’ve got a clear place to improve.

10. Mistakes or Deviations

• Why it matters: Losing isn’t always the problem—breaking your rules is. If you followed your system, a loss is just data. But if you deviated, that’s the real issue.

Track:

• Rule broken
• Why you broke it
• What you’ll do differently next time

This is how traders go from emotional to intentional.

11. Trade Grade or Score

Optional—but powerful.

Score each trade on:

• Execution (0–10)
• Following your plan (0–10)
• Setup quality (0–10)

This keeps your focus on process, not just outcomes.

12. Lessons Learned

• Why it matters: This is where growth happens. End every journal entry with 1–2 lines summarizing what you learned.

Example:

“Entry was valid, but structure was unclear. Wait for cleaner HH/HL confirmation next time.”

Then, review weekly and look for repeating themes.

Weekly Review: Turn Data Into Improvement

A journal is only useful if you review it.

Every week, sit down and extract insights:

• What setups performed best?
• Where did you break rules?
• What time or session were you most consistent?
• Are your winners covering your losers?

Create a 3-part summary:

1. What worked this week
2. What didn’t
3. What to focus on next week

Over time, these summaries become your edge.

How FX Replay Streamlines the Process

Manual journaling is a grind. That’s why most traders quit after a few weeks.

FX Replay removes the friction:

• Auto-capture screenshots of entries and exits
• Instant tagging of strategies and setups
• Detailed metrics on win rate, R:R, session performance, and more
• Easy trade journaling inside a clean interface

Instead of logging trades after hours, you’re journaling while you test—in real time.

This creates faster feedback, more reps, and sharper improvement.

Final Thoughts: Your Journal Is Your Edge

Great trades don’t just happen. They’re the result of consistent review, relentless improvement, and precise execution.

A well-kept journal tells the truth—whether you’re progressing or just pressing buttons.

So don’t just track for the sake of tracking. Track what matters:

• The plan
• The execution
• The context
• The emotion
• The outcome
• The lesson

Then use it to build discipline and clarity into your strategy.

FX Replay gives you the tools.

You bring the reps.

Together, that’s your edge.