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week 3 august review - back to trading post-vacation

first full week back.

easing into it.

feels different after the break.

week 3 numbers
#

starting (aug 18): $478,420

ending (aug 24): $480,340

week gain: +$1,920 (+0.40%)

trades: 5

wins: 4

losses: 1

win rate: 80%

trade breakdown
#

options (4 trades): +$1,640

SPX: 3 trades, +$1,280

QQQ: 1 trade, +$360

crypto (1 trade): +$280

BTC: 1 trade, +$280 (caught momentum from cruise week)

the loss
#

wednesday aug 20:

SPX call spread

  • market reversed on Fed minutes release
  • closed at 130% loss
  • damage: -$420

note:

first loss in 3 weeks. still rust-free mostly.

kept it small.

conditions
#

avg VIX: 14.8 (calm summer finish)

volume: 3.0M contracts (thin but workable)

regime: stable low vol

end of summer malaise.

post-vacation observations
#

trading differently:

less anxious about missing moves.

more patient waiting for setups.

the break reset something.

what the cruise taught me:

I don’t need to trade every signal.

missing $2k during vacation didn’t matter.

quality over quantity matters more now.

account status
#

current: $480,340

ytd: +$42,540 (+9.88%)

august: +$3,300 (+0.69%)

vs target: below pace (+1.5% to +2.0% target)

vacation week means lower monthly gains. expected.

week 4 expectations
#

last week of august.

target: +$1,500 to +$2,000

need +$4k more to hit 1.5% for month.

realistic: probably end around +1.0% to +1.2% due to vacation.

tonight
#

week 3 august complete. +$1,920 (+0.40%) across 5 trades. 80% win rate. one loss (-$420 on Fed minutes). first full week back from cruise. trading differently - more patient, less anxious. account $480,340, ytd +9.88%. august will be lower month due to vacation week.


2:24am sunday. week 3 august review. +$1,920 across 5 trades, 80% win rate. first full week post-cruise. trading with more patience now. break reset something. account $480,340, ytd +9.88%.

-AK

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