SMA breakout (Donchian-style) strategyvsMarket Structure (BOS/CHoCH) strategy
SMA breakout (Donchian-style) strategy: Buy a fresh push above the 20-bar mean and trail the winner until it folds. · Market Structure (BOS/CHoCH) strategy: Catch the first bar of a Change-of-Character — early reversal signal off swing structure.
SMA breakout (Donchian-style) strategy
Buy a fresh push above the 20-bar mean and trail the winner until it folds.
Market Structure (BOS/CHoCH) strategy
Catch the first bar of a Change-of-Character — early reversal signal off swing structure.
Indicators
- SMA (period 20)
- Market Structure (swing length 50)
Timeframes
Bias
Long only
Long & short
Market fit
Volatility expansion
Strong directional trends
Entry rules
- Enter long when close crosses above the 20-bar SMA.
- 4-bar cooldown after exit reduces back-to-back whipsaws.
- Long on bullish CHoCH — the first sign of an up-regime.
- Short on bearish CHoCH.
Exit rules
- Close on a cross back below the SMA.
- Trailing 5% stop catches deeper retracements before the SMA flips.
- An opposite-direction CHoCH closes the position.
- 4% trailing stop, 5-bar cooldown.
Expected behavior
Trendy growth in directional regimes punctuated by ugly chop when price oscillates around the SMA. Best paired with a higher-timeframe trend filter to skip the chop.
Patient — CHoCH signals are sparse by design. The strategy sits flat for long stretches and then catches the early bar of a regime change.
Complexity
Which one is right for you?
Derived from the bias, timeframe and indicator profile of each strategy — not a back-test forecast.
When to pick SMA breakout (Donchian-style) strategy
- You expect volatility expansion — the thesis is "Buy a fresh push above the 20-bar mean and trail the winner until it folds."
- You want a long-only bot on 1h–1d candles with a balanced rule-set.
- You're comfortable monitoring 1 indicator (SMA (period 20)).
Buy a fresh push above the 20-bar mean and trail the winner until it folds.
When to pick Market Structure (BOS/CHoCH) strategy
- You expect strong directional trends — the thesis is "Catch the first bar of a Change-of-Character — early reversal signal off swing structure."
- You want a long & short bot on 15m–1d candles with a balanced rule-set.
- You're comfortable monitoring 1 indicator (Market Structure (swing length 50)).
Catch the first bar of a Change-of-Character — early reversal signal off swing structure.
SMA breakout (Donchian-style) strategy
Buy a fresh push above the 20-bar mean and trail the winner until it folds.
Market Structure (BOS/CHoCH) strategy
Catch the first bar of a Change-of-Character — early reversal signal off swing structure.
Related comparisons
Other pairings that involve one of these strategies.
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