Trading Journal Template: What to Record During Practice Sessions
September 22, 2026 12:18 pmTrading Journal Template: What to Record During Simulator Practice Sessions
A trading journal template helps you document what you knew, planned, felt and decided during a simulator practice session — before, during and after each simulated trade.
That documentation matters more than the result.
A simulator can show you a virtual entry, a virtual exit and a virtual profit or loss. A platform report can list those results. But neither one can tell you why you acted, what you were feeling, whether you followed your own rule, or what you would do differently next time.
A journal can.
This guide is educational only. It is not financial advice, investment advice, legal advice, tax advice, a trading signal, a platform recommendation or a recommendation to trade. Real trading can involve loss of capital, fees, spreads, slippage, liquidity problems, platform outages, taxes, regulation and emotional pressure. A simulator and a journal cannot remove those risks.
If you are new to simulation, start with the Trading Simulator to understand the difference between practice and real trading. Then use this template to document your sessions more honestly.
Quick answer: what should a trading journal template include?
A trading journal template for simulator practice should include three sections:
Before the session:
- Date and time
- Market or instrument observed
- Practice purpose (one specific behavior to study)
- Time boundary (when to stop)
- What I will not change during the session
During the session (for each decision):
- Decision type (entry, exit, wait, no action)
- Reason written before the action
- Emotion or urge at the time
- Rule that applies
- Order type, if applicable
- Visible price and simulated fill, if shown
- Spread or fees, if visible
After the session:
- What the simulator made easy
- What the simulator hid or simplified
- Did I follow my rule?
- Did a virtual win or loss change my next decision?
- One process lesson, not a prediction
The point is not to fill every field perfectly. The point is to make your decision process visible enough to review.
Why a journal is different from a platform report
Many simulators and platforms provide reports after a session. Those reports can show:
- a list of simulated trades;
- entry and exit prices;
- virtual profit or loss;
- win rate;
- average gain and loss;
- session balance.
That information can be useful. But a report cannot answer the questions that matter most:
- Why did I enter at that moment?
- What was I feeling before I clicked?
- Did I write a reason before acting, or invent one after?
- Did I follow my own rule, or break it and get lucky?
- Did a fast move make me abandon my plan?
- Did the result change how I remember the decision?
A report shows what happened. A journal shows what you knew, what you planned and what you chose — at the moment the decision was made, before the outcome was visible.
CME Group’s free “Building a Trade Plan” education course lists a Trader Log as one of five essential components of a trading plan, alongside Objective, Methodology, Risk Management and Trading Strategies. The course notes that writing a plan forces traders to confront strengths and weaknesses. A simulator journal applies the same idea to practice: the documentation is not a formality. It is the learning tool.
Charles Schwab’s “4 Reasons to Try Paper Trading” similarly advises traders to “treat it like the real thing” — following a trading plan, setting entry and exit points, and understanding the cause of both successes and failures. A journal is how you do that scrutiny.
What to record before the simulator session
Before you open a chart or place a simulated order, write these items down:
| Field | What to write |
|---|---|
| Date and time | When the session starts. |
| Market or instrument | What you are observing — a symbol, a market, a chart. If the simulator uses specific data, note that. |
| Practice purpose | One specific behavior to study. Not “make money” or “test a strategy.” Something like: “Practice writing one reason before every order.” |
| Time boundary | When you will stop. For example: 20 minutes, or after 10 decisions. |
| Stop condition | What would make you stop early. For example: “If I start acting without writing a reason.” |
| What I will not change | A fixed rule for the session. For example: “I will not change my time boundary” or “I will not increase simulated size after a win.” |
| What I hope to learn | A question, not a prediction. For example: “Can I wait when I do not have a clear reason?” |
This setup takes two to three minutes. It is not busywork. It creates the reference point you will compare against after the session.
If you are unsure what to practice, the trading discipline exercises can help you choose one focused behavior at a time.
What to record during the simulator session
For each decision you make — or choose not to make — record the following:
| Field | Prompt | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Decision number | Count each entry, exit, wait or no-action choice. | Makes the session reviewable. |
| Time | When the decision happens in the session. | Helps you notice if urgency builds over time. |
| Decision type | Entry, exit, wait, reduce, add, cancel, stop change, no action. | Waiting and no-action are real decisions. Record them. |
| Reason before action | One sentence written before clicking. | The most important field. If you cannot write it, you are guessing. |
| Emotion or urge | Bored, rushed, frustrated, confident, fearful, trying to prove something, impatient, calm. | Emotions affect decisions. Writing them down makes the effect visible. |
| Rule check | Which written rule applies here? | Connects each decision to a standard you set before the session. |
| Order type | Market, limit, stop, or other — if the simulator shows this. | Helps you study mechanics, not just direction. |
| Visible price | What price the simulator showed before the order. | Documents the information you had at the time. |
| Simulated fill price | What price the simulator used for the fill, if shown. | Lets you compare visible price vs. fill — even in simulation. |
| Spread or fees | If the simulator shows them. | Many simulators hide costs. Noting this is part of the lesson. |
| Simulator assumption | Anything the tool assumes — instant fill, no fees, no slippage, unlimited liquidity. | Missing details are part of the learning. Write them down. |
Do not try to make the notes eloquent. A messy, honest note is more useful than a polished after-the-fact story.
If you want to connect journal practice with planning assumptions, review the risk-reward practice guide for a simple framework to write before each decision.
What to record after the simulator session
At the end of the session, stop and review. Do not just check the final balance.
Write answers to these questions:
| Review prompt | What to look for |
|---|---|
| What did the simulator make easy? | Instant fills, no fees, clean exits, no slippage, no outages, resettable balances. |
| What did the simulator hide? | Spreads, liquidity, execution delays, custody, taxes, emotional pressure of real capital. |
| Did I follow my rule? | Yes, no, or partially. Be specific. |
| Did a virtual win change my next decision? | Did you become more aggressive, impatient or confident after a good result? |
| Did a virtual loss change my next decision? | Did you become fearful, reckless, or eager to “make it back”? |
| Did I write reasons before acting, or after? | Count how many decisions had a pre-action reason vs. no reason. |
| What would I research before practicing again? | One specific question, not a general goal. |
| What did I learn about my process? | One process lesson. Not a prediction, not a strategy, not a claim about the market. |
If your review is mostly “I made virtual money” or “I lost virtual money,” the session was too shallow. Rewrite the review around process, behavior and decision quality.
For help with how position size affects behavior during simulation, the position sizing practice guide covers a simple exercise for observing how size changes your reactions.
How to review journal entries honestly
The hardest part of journaling is not writing. It is reviewing honestly.
Here are common traps to watch for:
Rewriting the reason after the outcome
If you wrote “I entered because the setup matched my rule” but the real reason was “I was bored and the chart was moving fast,” the journal only works if you wrote the honest version at the time.
If you notice that your after-the-session memory does not match your during-the-session notes, trust the during-the-session notes. They were written closer to the decision.
Treating a good result as a good decision
A simulated trade can work out for the wrong reason. A bad decision can produce a virtual profit. That does not make the decision good.
Ask: “Would I make the same decision again with the same information, not knowing the outcome?” If the answer is no, the result was luck, not skill.
Ignoring the no-action decisions
Some of the most useful journal entries are the ones where you chose not to act. Waiting, passing on a setup, or stopping early are all decisions worth documenting.
If your journal only contains trades, you are only recording the actions, not the discipline.
Comparing journal entries to prove a pattern too early
A few journal entries are not enough to identify a behavioral pattern. You might notice that you acted without a reason three sessions in a row. That is worth watching, but it is not yet a conclusion.
Patterns require more data and more honesty than a handful of practice sessions can provide.
If you want a structured way to review historical decisions with a before-and-after format, the replay trading journal guide covers that narrower practice. This article focuses on everyday session documentation, not historical-data replay.
A sample filled-in journal entry
Here is one example of how a single journal entry might look. It is hypothetical, educational and uses no real market data.
Session setup
- Date: September 22, 2026
- Market: Simulated equity index chart
- Practice purpose: Write one reason before every order
- Time boundary: 20 minutes
- Stop condition: If I act without a written reason twice
- What I will not change: Time boundary
Decision 3 of 8
- Time: 6 minutes into session
- Decision type: Wait
- Reason before action: “Price is near a level I marked, but I do not have a clear invalidation point. I will wait.”
- Emotion: Impatient. The chart moved quickly and I wanted to participate.
- Rule check: “Write one reason before acting.” — Followed.
- Order type: None (wait).
- Visible price: Not applicable.
- Simulated fill: Not applicable.
- Spread/fees: Not shown by tool.
- Simulator assumption: Tool does not show order-book depth or spread.
Post-session review
- What the simulator made easy: Instant fills, no fees, reset button.
- What the simulator hid: Spreads, liquidity, execution time, emotional pressure of real capital.
- Did I follow my rule? Yes, 7 of 8 decisions had a pre-action reason. Decision 5 had no written reason — I acted out of impatience.
- Did a virtual win change my next decision? After decision 4 (a simulated gain), I felt more confident and entered decision 5 faster than planned.
- What would I research? Whether the simulator shows realistic spreads and fills.
- Process lesson: Impatience after a win is a pattern I need to watch. The written reason is the control, not the result.
This example is intentionally imperfect. The value of a journal is not in producing clean entries. It is in creating a record that makes your decision process visible enough to review.
When a journal is not enough
A trading journal is a useful tool. It is not a complete education.
A journal cannot:
- prove that you are ready to trade live;
- guarantee that your practice habits will transfer to real markets;
- remove the emotional pressure of real capital at risk;
- reproduce real execution, real costs, real liquidity or real tax consequences;
- tell you whether a strategy has positive expectancy;
- replace broader risk management, platform verification, regulatory awareness or professional advice.
Schwab’s paper trading guidance notes that “bad habits a trader picks up could sneak into a real trading experience.” A journal can help you notice those habits. But noticing is not the same as fixing, and fixing in simulation is not the same as performing under real pressure.
If you find that journal notes reveal repeated rule-breaking, impatience, overconfidence or fear, those are signals to slow down — not to trade live. The trading discipline exercises can help with focused behavioral practice.
FAQ
What is a trading journal template?
A trading journal template is a structured worksheet for recording what you knew, planned, felt and decided during a practice session. It typically includes session setup fields, pre-decision notes, during-session tracking and post-session review prompts.
How is a trading journal different from a trading log?
The terms overlap. A “trading log” often refers to a list of trades with dates, prices and results. A “trading journal” usually includes more decision context — reasons, emotions, rule checks and behavioral review. For simulator practice, the journal format is more useful because the goal is process documentation, not just result tracking.
Should I journal every simulator session?
You do not need to journal every session, but regular journaling makes the habit more useful. Even a short session with one documented decision is more valuable than a long session with no documentation at all.
What if I forget to write the reason before acting?
Write it as soon as you notice. Label it honestly: “Reason written after the action.” That label keeps the record accurate. Over time, the habit of writing before acting should become more consistent.
Can a trading journal improve my results?
A journal can help you observe your decision process, notice patterns and review behavior. It does not guarantee better results, improved performance or live-trading readiness. It is a documentation and review tool, not a performance enhancer.
How is this different from a replay trading journal?
A replay trading journal is designed for historical-data practice where you step through past charts and must separate before-outcome decisions from after-outcome review. That practice focuses on hindsight bias. This article covers everyday simulator session documentation — a broader, more general journal practice. See the replay trading journal guide for the narrower approach.
Should I use a spreadsheet, notebook or app?
Use whatever format you will actually maintain. A notebook can work. A spreadsheet can work. A notes app can work. The format matters less than the habit of writing before acting and reviewing honestly after the session.
Is this financial advice?
No. Games for Traders content is educational only. This article does not provide personalized financial, investment, tax, legal or trading advice. It does not recommend any asset, platform, strategy, order type, broker, position size or live-trading action.
Final note
A trading journal template is not a scoreboard.
It is a mirror.
Use it to see what you knew before you acted. Use it to notice when emotion replaced reason. Use it to track whether you followed your own rule. Use it to separate a lucky result from a sound decision.
Do not use it to prove that you are ready for live trading. A clean journal entry is not a guarantee of future performance. A pattern you notice in simulation is not a pattern you can rely on in live markets. A process you rehearse without real money is not a process you have tested under real pressure.
Keep the documentation honest. Keep the review focused on behavior. And continue with more simulator, discipline and risk-management guides in Articles.
Tags: simulator journal, trade documentation, trade review, trading journal, trading journal template, trading log
Categorised in: Trading Basics