Part 1: Weekly Planning Workflow

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Sunday Evening: The Week Ahead (15 Minutes)

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Before the market opens Monday, I review the landscape.

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><p><strong>This Week&rsquo;s Events (Example):</strong></p>

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════
         WEEK OF: ____________ TRADE PLAN
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════

CURRENT PORTFOLIO STATUS
Open Iron Condors: _____ / 6 max
Capital deployed: _____% (target: 30-50%)
Cash buffer: _____% (minimum: 20%)

ECONOMIC CALENDAR SUMMARY
Major events: ________________________________
Safe entry days: _____________________________
Days to avoid: ______________________________

VIX ASSESSMENT
VIX Spot: _______
Structure: Contango / Backwardation
Regime: Calm / Elevated / High

PLANNED ENTRIES THIS WEEK
□ Entry 1: _______ (day/time)
   Target expiration: _______
   Contracts: _______

□ Entry 2: _______ (day/time)
   Target expiration: _______
   Contracts: _______

POSITIONS TO CLOSE
□ IC #___: Close when _______
□ IC #___: Close when _______

ADJUSTMENTS NEEDED
□ IC #___: Roll _______ if _______

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════

Part 2: Trade Entry Workflow

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Step-by-Step Entry Process (10-15 Minutes)

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When I’m ready to enter a new Iron Condor, I follow this exact sequence.

Step 1: Final Market Check (2 Minutes)

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□ SPY current price: $_______
□ SPY vs 50 MA: Above / Below (need ABOVE)
□ SPY vs 200 MA: Above / Below (need ABOVE)
□ VIX current: _______ (need 14-25)
□ Any breaking news? NO / YES: _______

All clear? → Proceed to Step 2
Any issues? → STOP, reassess

Step 2: Identify Target Expiration (1 Minute)

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My Standard: 30-45 DTE

Example: Today is Jan 19. I’m looking at Feb 21 (33 DTE) or Feb 28 (40 DTE) expirations.

Step 3: Build the Option Chain View (2 Minutes)

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In your broker platform, set up the chain to show:

Chain Setup Screenshot Reference:

PUTS                              CALLS
OI    Vol   Bid   Ask  Delta  Strike  Delta  Ask   Bid   Vol    OI
5420  892  0.85  0.88  -0.08   560   0.08   0.45  0.43   445  3210
4890  756  1.08  1.12  -0.10   565   0.10   0.52  0.49   523  2980
6230  934  1.35  1.40  -0.12   570   0.12   0.61  0.58   612  4120
7840 1245  1.72  1.78  -0.15   575   0.14   0.73  0.70   734  5430  ← Target zone
8920 1456  2.15  2.22  -0.18   580   0.17   0.88  0.84   856  6120  ← Target zone
...
                                 594 ← CURRENT PRICE
...
5670  823  0.78  0.82   0.15   610   -0.16  1.95  1.88   912  5890  ← Target zone
4230  712  0.58  0.62   0.12   615   -0.13  1.52  1.46   678  4560  ← Target zone
3450  534  0.42  0.46   0.09   620   -0.10  1.18  1.12   534  3120

Step 4: Select Strikes (3 Minutes)

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graph TD
    A[SPY @ $594] --> B[Find Put Strikes
4-5% OTM]
    A --> C[Find Call Strikes
3-4% OTM]

    B --> D[Short Put: $570
Delta = -0.15]
    D --> E[Long Put: $565
$5 wide wing]

    C --> F[Short Call: $615
Delta = 0.14]
    F --> G[Long Call: $620
$5 wide wing]

    E --> H[CONDOR STRUCTURE
565/570/615/620]
    G --> H

    style H fill:#0f5132,stroke:#75b798,color:#d1e7dd

Strike Selection Worksheet:

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════
           STRIKE SELECTION WORKSHEET
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════

SPY Current Price: $_______

PUT SIDE
Target: 4-5% below current = $_______ zone
Short put strike: $_______ (delta: _____)
Long put strike: $_______ (wing width: $5)
Put spread credit: $_______

CALL SIDE
Target: 3-4% above current = $_______ zone
Short call strike: $_______ (delta: _____)
Long call strike: $_______ (wing width: $5)
Call spread credit: $_______

COMBINED
Total credit: $_______
Credit as % of $5 width: _______%
≥12%? □ YES □ NO (need YES)

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════

Step 5: Calculate Position Size (1 Minute)

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Formula:

Max Loss Per Contract = Wing Width - Credit
Max Loss Per Contract = $5.00 - $0.70 = $4.30 = $430

Portfolio Risk Limit = 2% of Portfolio
If Portfolio = $50,000, then Max Risk = $1,000

Max Contracts = $1,000 ÷ $430 = 2.3 → Round DOWN to 2 contracts

Step 6: Execute the Order (2-5 Minutes)

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Step 7: Document the Trade

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Immediately after fill:

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════
              NEW IRON CONDOR ENTRY
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════

Date/Time: ____________
SPY at entry: $_______
VIX at entry: _______

STRUCTURE
Expiration: _______ (_____ DTE)
Put spread: $_____/$_____
Call spread: $_____/$_____
Contracts: _______

PRICING
Credit received: $_______ per contract
Total credit: $_______
Max loss: $_______

TARGETS
50% profit target: $_______
Stop loss (2x credit): $_______
DTE exit target: 21 days

NOTES
_________________________________________
_________________________________________

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════

Part 3: Daily Monitoring Workflow

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Morning Check (3 Minutes, Before 10 AM)

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MORNING CHECK: ____________

SPY Pre-market: $_______ (vs yesterday: +/-___%)
VIX: _______ (vs yesterday: +/-___%)

OPEN POSITIONS
□ IC #1: P/L ___%, DTE ___, Status: _______
□ IC #2: P/L ___%, DTE ___, Status: _______
□ IC #3: P/L ___%, DTE ___, Status: _______

ACTIONS NEEDED TODAY
□ _________________________________
□ _________________________________

Part 4: Position Management Workflows

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Closing a Winner

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Closing a Loser

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Adjusting a Tested Position

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Rolling the Untested Side Down

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Scenario: SPY drops toward put strike. Call spread is safe.

graph TD
    A[Original Position
565/570/615/620] --> B{SPY drops to $578}
    B --> C[Put spread tested
Call spread safe]
    C --> D[Buy back 615/620 call spread
for $0.05]
    D --> E[Sell new 600/605 call spread
for $0.25]
    E --> F[Net credit: +$0.20]
    F --> G[New Position
565/570/600/605
Extra cushion on put side]

    style G fill:#0f5132,stroke:#75b798,color:#d1e7dd

Step-by-step:

1. Identify the safe side (call spread in this example)

2. Check if roll is profitable

   • Current call spread value: ~$0.05
   • New call spread value: ~$0.25
   • Net credit available: $0.20 ✓

3. Execute as separate orders or roll order

   • Some brokers have “roll” functionality
   • Otherwise: BTC old spread, STO new spread

4. Update position record

   • Original credit: $0.70
   • Roll credit: $0.20
   • New total credit: $0.90
   • New max loss: $5.00 - $0.90 = $4.10
   • New breakevens recalculated

Rolling the Untested Side Up

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Scenario: SPY rallies toward call strike. Put spread is safe.

Same logic in reverse:

• Buy back put spread (cheap now)
• Sell new put spread closer to current price
• Collect additional credit
• Lower your upper breakeven effectively

Part 5: Weekly Review Workflow

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Friday End-of-Week Review (10 Minutes)

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═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════
         WEEK ENDING: ____________ REVIEW
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════

TRADES CLOSED THIS WEEK
Trade 1: _____ result ($_____)
Trade 2: _____ result ($_____)
Trade 3: _____ result ($_____)

Week P/L: $_______
MTD P/L: $_______
YTD P/L: $_______

Win Rate (rolling 20 trades): _______%
Average Winner: $_______
Average Loser: $_______

OPEN POSITIONS END OF WEEK
IC #1: ___% P/L, ___ DTE
IC #2: ___% P/L, ___ DTE
IC #3: ___% P/L, ___ DTE

Total open risk: $_______

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════

Part 6: Monthly Review Workflow

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End-of-Month Deep Dive (30 Minutes)

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Monthly Statistics

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═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════
              MONTH: ____________ REVIEW
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════

PERFORMANCE SUMMARY
Total trades: _______
Winners: _______ (____%)
Losers: _______ (____%)

Gross profits: $_______
Gross losses: $_______
Net P/L: $_______
Return on capital: _______%

TRADE ANALYSIS
Average credit received: $_______
Average profit (winners): $_______
Average loss (losers): $_______
Profit factor: _______ (gross profit ÷ gross loss)

POSITION METRICS
Average DTE at entry: _______ days
Average hold time: _______ days
Adjustments made: _______
Adjustment success rate: _______%

CONTEXT
Average VIX during month: _______
SPY monthly return: _______%
Market regime: Trending / Range-bound

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════

Monthly Optimization Questions

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1. Are my delta targets appropriate?

   • Win rate vs. expectation?
   • Premium sufficient?

2. Is my timing working?

   • 30-45 DTE optimal?
   • Exit timing (50% rule)?

3. Are adjustments helping?

   • Net benefit or just delaying losses?

4. Is position sizing correct?

   • Any trade hurt too much?
   • Any trade too small to matter?

Spreadsheet Template

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Here’s the essential tracking spreadsheet structure:

Related Resources

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Disclaimer: This workflow guide reflects my personal trading process. Options trading involves significant risk. Develop your own system based on your risk tolerance and experience level.