Retest entries without chasing the second spike
Waiting for a retest is not the same as waiting forever — here is how we define a valid return to the break level in drills.
A retest is a return of price to the broken level that still respects the direction of the break. In our worksheets the retest candle must touch a defined band around the level — often a few ticks or a small percentage of the prior range height — without closing deeply back inside the old range.
Invalid retests
If price slices back through the level and closes inside the prior range, we cancel the breakout idea for that session rather than “buy the next bounce.” Traders who hate missing moves often redefine the band wider mid-trade. That habit is exactly what Chart Review sessions catch.
Timing the wait
We do not require a retest on every confirmed break. High-volume closes far outside a range may earn a reduced-size entry with a wider invalidation, named as such on the sheet. The error is pretending a thin break deserved the same treatment.
Lab exercise
On historical charts, mark the first touch of the break level after the break candle. Score whether it qualified as a retest under a pre-written band rule. Do this for twenty events before you argue about discretionary exceptions.