Is Your Trading Strategy Viable?

Pilots train to fly in simulators before they ever get into a plane. At Topstep, we believe that trading in simulators is a safer way to learn the ins and outs of trading than just throwing yourself into the live market. But how do you know if your strategy that works so well in a sim will carry over to the floor?

This week on Limit Up! Podcast, Jack and Dan are joined by Topstep founder Michael Patak. They talk about the golden age of trading when scalping was the go-to and talk about how that relates to learning in simulated trade environments. The team also shares metrics to look at to make sure your sim strategy will work for you in the real world. If you’re a trader with Topstep, you won’t want to miss this discussion.

• (01:24) - Is your trading strategy viable?
• (02:18) - Buy everything rally
• (09:24) - Scalping back in the day
• (12:10) - The computer revolution
• (15:36) - The Hummingbird Project
• (21:00) - Simulators
• (28:36) - Timeframes
• (36:47) - High probability setups
• (39:15) - Coach T

Limit Up! is a podcast brought to you by Topstep about trading, trading psychology, trading life, and pretty much whatever else the wonderful world of markets has to offer. It’s hosted by two former professional traders, Jack and Dan, who still dabble in futures, forex, options, political betting—they basically love to follow the action. They’ll teach you how to trade, but more importantly, how to develop the habits that make traders good. Risk Disclosure: https://www.topstep.com/risk-disclosure/

Topstep is the premiere funding opportunity for traders looking to make the most of market opportunities without risking their own capital. When traders pass the completely-objective Trading Combine®, Topstep funds them with proprietary money. Guaranteed. Beyond funding, we seek to instill better habits in our traders (hence the Limit Up! Podcast and other educational resources). Topstep has been based in Chicago since 2012.

Jack Pelzer is a co-host of Limit Up! He traded as part of a U.S. Treasury group for 7 years at Chopper Trading and DRW. After leaving the industry, he became a Writing Fellow and Senior Contributing Writer for The Onion. He is now the Head of Content at Topstep.

Dan Hodgman is a co-host of Limit Up! Prior to coming to Topstep Dan traded 30 Yr Treasury Options and Yield Spreads. Before that, he served in the United States Marine Corps where he simultaneously managed his own Futures Account applying the skills he grew up learning from clerking on the trading floor. Now Dan works with the Traders here at Topstep as a Performance Coach as well as being a regular on the Daily Market Recap.

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