TradeStack Back
Glossary / Psychology

Swing trading

Definition

Holding trades for days to weeks to capture larger moves.

Why it matters

Fewer trades means slower feedback, so swing traders need a longer journaling horizon before any statistic is meaningful.

Example

Entering on a daily pullback with a 4% stop and a 10% target, holding 5-15 days, and taking 4-8 trades a month.

How to track it in a journal

TradeStack calculates the core performance numbers — win rate, average win and loss, profit factor, expectancy, drawdown and consistency — automatically from imported trades, so swing trading stops being something you estimate and becomes something you read.

Related terms

Overtrading
Taking more trades than your plan justifies.
Revenge trading
Taking a trade to recover a loss rather than because the setup appeared.
FOMO
Entering late because a move is already running without you.
Tilt
Trading while emotionally compromised after a loss or a big win.

Keep reading

Trading journal guides
Expectancy, profit factor, drawdown, backtesting and the PDT rule.
Free trading calculators
Position size, risk-reward, expectancy and options profit.
Expectancy calculator
Expected profit per trade from your own numbers.
Broker CSV export guides
Step-by-step exports for Tradovate, NinjaTrader, IBKR and more.
Stop estimating your numbers

TradeStack is a free trading journal that calculates them from your own trades.

Start free