What fields should I log for every gold trend continuation trade?

The trend definition used at entry (which of the three qualifying conditions were present), pullback depth as a percentage of the prior impulse leg, the exact entry trigger, and the trail method applied after the first partial.

What is the MFE capture ratio and why does it matter for trend trades?

It is the R actually banked divided by the R available at the trade's peak favourable excursion. A ratio persistently below about 0.4 usually means winners are being closed on discomfort rather than on the planned trail, which is the most common and most expensive execution error in this setup.

How does trend age affect the outcome of a continuation trade?

Entries taken on days 2–3 of a confirmed trend typically show the strongest expectancy — proven but not yet crowded — while entries on day 6 or beyond are more late-cycle and prone to exhaustion. Bucketing R by trend age at entry makes this visible in your own data.

Should pullback depth thresholds stay fixed over time?

No. The depth at which hit rate drops off is specific to the current XAUUSD volatility regime. Re-check the bucketing quarterly, since a depth that is "deep" in a quiet ATR environment is normal in an expanded one.

How many trend continuation trades do I need before the journal is useful?

Roughly twenty closed trades gives enough for the trend-age, MFE capture and pullback-depth buckets to start showing a pattern rather than noise, given how infrequently this setup fires compared to intraday strategies.

Journaling Gold Trend Continuation — XAUUSD Fields That Matter

Journal gold trend continuation with four core fields — trend definition used, pullback depth, entry trigger, trail method — plus three edge-decay metrics: R outcome bucketed by trend age, MFE capture ratio, and hit rate by pullback depth. Together they separate a strategy problem from an execution problem within a small sample.

Gold trend continuation fires only six to twelve times a month, so the journal needs categorical fields recorded at entry rather than after the outcome is known: the trend definition used, pullback depth as a percentage of the prior leg, the exact entry trigger, and the trail method applied after the first partial, backed by daily, 4-hour and 15-minute screenshots.

Three edge-decay metrics extend that base into a decay-detection system: R outcome bucketed by trend age at entry (days 2–3 typically strongest, day 6+ weakest), the MFE capture ratio measuring how much of each trade's peak favourable excursion was actually banked, and hit rate bucketed by pullback depth as a percentage of the prior impulse leg.

Connecting MetaTrader 5 to the GoldHunts journal automates session attribution and P&L, leaving only the four core fields and a short tag set to add by hand, reviewed monthly across all three edge-decay views to separate a genuine scarcity of good trends from a quiet drift in execution.