1
Q
How much is 1 tick worth in MES?
A
$1.25.
2
Q
How many ticks make up 1 point in MES?
A
4 ticks = 1 point = $5.
3
Q
What is the contract multiplier for MES?
A
$5 × the S&P 500 index price.
4
Q
When does MES trade?
A
Nearly 24/5, from Sunday 5PM CT to Friday 4PM CT, with a 15-minute daily break.
5
Q
What’s the advantage of MES compared to ES (E-mini)?
A
Smaller contract size (1/10th ES), meaning less risk per tick.
6
Q
If you risk 20 ticks per trade, how much are you risking per MES contract?
A
20 × $1.25 = $25.
7
Q
What’s a safe daily stop loss relative to your profit target?
A
Half the profit target (e.g., $500 target, $250 stop).
8
Q
Why is a 3:1 Risk/Reward ratio important?
A
You can be wrong more often and still stay profitable.
9
Q
What should you always set before entering a trade?
A
Stop Loss (SL) and Take Profit (TP).
10
Q
What’s the risk of ‘revenge trading’?
A
Blowing up your account by chasing losses emotionally.
11
Q
What does a Doji candlestick signal?
A
Market indecision, possible reversal or pause.
12
Q
What does a Hammer after a downtrend signal?
A
Bullish reversal.
13
Q
What do 3 White Soldiers represent?
A
Strong bullish reversal, momentum higher.
14
Q
What does MACD crossing above zero mean?
A
Bullish momentum shift.
15
Q
What does RSI > 70 mean?
A
Overbought — potential pullback.
16
Q
What’s your #1 job in the combine?
A
Protect your account — survive to trade another day.
17
Q
What should you do after 2 losing trades in a row?
A
Step back, reassess, avoid revenge trading.
18
Q
Why is journaling trades important?
A
Helps spot patterns in mistakes and successes.
19
Q
What is the biggest enemy in trading?
A
Your own emotions (fear, greed, impatience).
20
Q
What does Coach Hoag mean by ‘staying in your lane’?
A
Trade your plan, your setups, not random noise.
21
Q
What’s the symbol for the Micro Nasdaq 100?
A
MNQ.
22
Q
How much is 1 tick worth in MNQ?
A
$0.50.
23
Q
How many ticks = 1 point in MNQ?
A
4 ticks = 1 point = $2.
24
Q
Which is more volatile: MNQ or MES?
A
MNQ — it moves faster and has larger swings.
25
What’s the main difference between ES and MES?
ES is the E-mini S&P 500 (tick = $12.50), MES is the Micro (tick = $1.25). MES is 1/10 the size.
26
What’s the “cash open” time for U.S. equities?
8:30 AM CT (9:30 AM ET).
27
What tends to happen in the first 30 minutes of the market open?
High volatility, price discovery, institutional orders flooding in.
28
What’s the “lunch hour” effect?
Volume dries up around midday → choppier market.
29
What’s the “closing hour” effect?
2:00–3:00 PM CT often has higher volatility as funds rebalance.
30
Why do futures often gap on Sunday evening?
Because global markets react to weekend news before U.S. cash market opens Monday.
31
What report is released the first Friday of every month at 7:30 AM CT?
Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP).
32
What’s the impact of Fed interest rate announcements?
They cause big volatility in ES/MES/MNQ.
33
Why watch the VIX alongside MES?
VIX tracks volatility/fear; spikes usually mean S&P is dropping.
34
What does CPI measure?
Consumer Price Index — inflation.
35
Why is the Nasdaq more sensitive to interest rate hikes?
Tech/growth stocks rely on cheap borrowing.
36
If ES tick = $12.50, how many MES contracts = 1 ES contract?
10 MES = 1 ES.
37
What’s the overnight margin for MES at most brokers?
About $1,200–1,500 per contract.
38
What’s the buying power advantage of trading MES in a combine vs. live?
Combine doesn’t require margin; you only follow Topstep rules.
39
Why is position sizing key for passing?
Keeps losses within DMLL, prevents blowing up on one trade.
40
What’s a good rule of thumb for risk per trade?
1–2% of account balance.
41
What’s Coach Hoag’s “Three P’s”?
Plan, Process, Patience.
42
What’s the danger of overtrading?
Commissions, slippage, and emotional fatigue eat profits.
43
What should you do before placing every trade?
Ask: Where’s my entry, stop, and target?
44
Why is a “flat day” (no trades) sometimes a win?
It means you avoided bad setups and preserved capital.
45
What does “trade location” mean?
Entering at favorable levels (support/resistance), not chasing price.
46
What makes a good long entry after a downtrend?
Hammer or Morning Star at support + rising volume.
47
What makes a good short entry after an uptrend?
Shooting Star or Evening Star at resistance + declining volume.
48
What’s the safest way to confirm a breakout entry?
Wait for candle close above resistance with volume > 20-bar average.
49
What does a Doji at support tell you?
Indecision — wait for next candle confirmation before entering long.
50
What’s a “pullback entry”?
Entering after price retests a broken resistance (now support) or broken support (now resistance).
51
What’s a sign you should exit early?
Opposite reversal candlestick forms (Hammer when you’re short, Shooting Star when long).
52
Why trail stops in MES?
Locks in profits while letting winners run.
53
What’s a good rule for scaling out?
Take partial profit at 1R, leave remainder for 2R–3R.
54
What’s a “failed breakout” exit signal?
Price breaks a key level but quickly reverses back below/above.
55
When should you always flatten your position?
Before major news (FOMC, NFP, CPI) if you’re not experienced with event volatility.
56
What does RSI < 30 at support mean?
Oversold + support zone → potential long entry.
57
What does RSI > 70 at resistance mean?
Overbought + resistance → potential short entry.
58
How to use MACD crossover for entries?
Bullish crossover near support → long. Bearish crossover near resistance → short.
59
What does MACD histogram shrinking mean?
Momentum is fading — possible exit or reversal ahead.
60
How do Bollinger Bands help entries?
Price piercing lower band with RSI oversold → possible buy.
61
What’s your #1 question before entering?
Where is my stop loss?
62
Why check higher timeframes (15m/1h) before entering on 5m?
Confirms trend direction and avoids trading against the bigger move.
63
What’s “confluence”?
Multiple signals aligning (support level + RSI oversold + bullish candlestick).
64
Why check ATR before trade?
Ensures stop loss is realistic for volatility.
65
What does volume confirmation mean?
Stronger signals if volume supports the move (e.g., breakout on high volume).
66
What’s the danger of entering without confirmation?
Higher chance of false breakouts and chop losses.
67
What’s the benefit of waiting for candle close?
Reduces risk of “wick traps” where price reverses before close.
68
What should you do if you miss an entry?
Do not chase — wait for the next setup.
69
What’s your golden rule for exits?
Plan exits before entry: TP, SL, and conditions to flatten early.
70
What’s the final pre-trade question?
“Does this trade fit my plan, or am I forcing it?”
71
What’s the best primary chart timeframe for day trading MES?
5-minute chart (balance of signals and noise).
72
What’s a good higher timeframe for context?
15-minute or 1-hour to confirm trend and key levels.
73
What’s a good lower timeframe for scalps?
1-minute chart, but only after context is clear.
74
Why shouldn’t you only trade off the 1-minute chart?
Too noisy, false signals, emotional overload.
75
Why check daily charts before intraday?
Daily high/low often act as magnets for price.
76
What’s the difference between 'new bar' and 'bar close' alerts?
'New bar' fires immediately when the candle opens; 'bar close' fires only after the candle confirms.
77
Why is 'bar close' often safer for signals?
Prevents false signals from intra-bar wicks.
78
When might 'new bar' be useful?
'New bar' is useful for scalping or fast entries where speed > confirmation.
79
Why do traders use Heikin Ashi candles?
Smooth out noise, make trends clearer.
80
Why should you compare Heikin Ashi to regular candles?
Heikin Ashi lags — confirm with real OHLC before entering.
81
What’s the role of ATR in your strategy?
Sets stop losses relative to volatility.
82
What does RSI measure?
Relative Strength Index: overbought (>70) / oversold (<30).
83
How does MACD help in MES trading?
Confirms momentum shifts via moving average crossovers.
84
Why use Volume Profile / TPO charts?
Shows where the most trading occurred (value areas, POC).
85
What does VWAP show?
The average price weighted by volume — key intraday magnet.
86
What levels should you mark before trading?
Prior day’s high, low, close, and overnight high/low.
87
Why is yesterday’s high important?
Often becomes today’s resistance or breakout target.
88
What’s the significance of the opening range (first 30m)?
Defines intraday balance; breaks often drive moves.
89
What’s the Globex session?
Overnight futures trading session before cash open.
90
Why should you mark overnight highs/lows?
Price often tests or rejects these levels during RTH.
91
What’s the safest order type for beginners?
Limit orders at predefined levels.
92
Why use OCO orders in TopstepX?
Automatically cancels one leg when TP or SL is hit — prevents forgetting exits.
93
What’s a trailing stop?
Stop that moves with price in your favor, locking profits.
94
Why practice in TradingView before trading in TopstepX?
Testing signals + setups in a forgiving environment before risking combine rules.
95
What’s the golden rule for setup?
KISS: Keep It Simple, Stick to a plan, avoid indicator overload.
LH Trading
flashcards
Decks in class (16)
# Cards
-
Candlesticks59
-
Trading Indicators24
-
Topstep Coach95
-
SMRT Algo74
-
VIX25
-
Risk Management25
-
Market Selection25
-
Trading Psychology25
-
Trading Strategies & Edge25
-
Data & Backtesting25
-
Technology & Setup25
-
Costs of Trading25
-
Lifestyle & Routine + Acronyms40
-
Scaling & Longevity25
-
Trading Quotes17
-
Indicators & Chart Types for Day Trading Futures40
