MES MICROS TRADE PLAN
TUE/WED RTH

Micros Trader – ES Trading Room Transcript

Tuesday, March 17, 2025  |  Day Before FOMC

Pre-Market & Opening Recap

Welcome to the Micros Trader ES Trading Room. Overnight had all the fun again. We only mapped out longs on the Daily Trade Plan last night — no shorts — so we’re a long ways from an ideal entry here. We’ll stand down and see what RTH offers us.

Post-Open Observations

Price blasted right off a strong level and ran straight to the next strong. That’s exactly what we’re looking for in ES Emini price action. As I said in the briefing, I would have been long here if I’d been up for it — but I wasn’t, so we missed it.

Looking at this from Core Strategy and the Daily Trade Plan — there was certainly an entry here. The ideal stop would have been just back underneath the strong range. If we lose that range, we were given the gift of a move.

Andrew took Battle Plan Two long and is in a great position. Congratulations — that’s what it’s all about. He couldn’t sleep and executed his own plan. Nice mapping, nice trade.

As Joe mentioned yesterday — one of the most important questions you can ask yourself is: where do I want to engage price? That’s exactly what the Daily Trade Plan is designed to help you answer.

Trade Management – Andrew’s Long Position

Andrew is long from Battle Plan Two. Here’s my recommendation as we track his trade in the ES Trading Room:

• Move stop to capture a 50-pointer once price pushes into this area.
• Option 1: Take profit right in front of this level and walk away. You’re done. Green day.
• Option 2: Once it clears above, move stop to a 50-pointer and go hands-free. If it keeps running, you do even better.

When it gets to 55–60 points of profit, move your stop to lock in 50 and let price do what it’s going to do. There’s no wrong decision here — it’s exciting either way.

Daily Reminders

Stops

Stops are insurance for your business. It’s the cost of doing business. If you had a retail storefront, you’d have insurance, overhead, theft — all kinds of things. Know where you’re wrong and get out, or require it to be a touch-and-go. You’re either right away, or you’re right out.

Our system is so good in the ES Emini and MES Micros — we know there’s another trade around the corner. We know there is. So stay alive to trade another day.

You’re never going to regret not trading on a day before FOMC. Don’t let today hurt you. Don’t let any day hurt you. Part of that process is making sure you’re your best you. When you walk onto the trading floor, they’re checking your vitals — how much sleep did you get, are you hydrated, are you mentally clear? You have to bring your best self to the ES Trading Room every single day.

Stops Provide Information

Be a professional loser. Know what the stop is telling you.

Clean, Clear, Crisp Levels

I want entries so obvious that if a new member were submitting their chart to earn their badges, I’d say yes — that’s a level. There are nuances you develop the longer you work with our system, but start with the obvious ones.

Backup Levels Matter

Not only should it be a clean level — where’s your backup? How far away is it? Sometimes I’ll trade the backup level intentionally, going to the greediest part of the move. If you always trade the greediest part of the move, you’ll hardly ever be wrong, but you won’t get as many trades. There’s a balance.

Trade Location & Trend

Am I with trend? Am I counter-trend? Am I counter a parabolic move? That’s what I’m here for as your navigator. You’re the pilot of this aircraft — I’m the navigator helping you spot turbulence, other traffic, and where the clear air is.

Market Structure & Daily Trade Plan Review

Battle Plan Two and Three were the prime areas to look for longs. Andrew executed from Battle Plan Two and has been tracking beautifully.

From the overnight low, we’ve had a 90-point move in the ES Emini. Just because it’s going up doesn’t mean it has to come back down — but we’ve had a phenomenal move, and we’re now bumping up against the warning shot to bears.

Current observations for the ES Trading Room:

• Took out two previous day highs
• Filled the gap from last Thursday — primary target for all MES Micros and ES Emini longs
• Now sitting at the warning shot to bears
• Bears still in control, but barely
• ES and NQ are outside their VWAP bands — typically a stand-down signal for counter-trend trades unless you get a clear reversal pattern

The sentence I like to use: great bears know where the bulls are, and great bulls know where the bears are. That’s the core principle behind the Daily Trade Plan. I needed a way to stop trying to trade every tick and every level and instead ask: where is the best place on this chart to engage price? Not every tick. Not every level. The best place. That was the genesis of mapping out battle plan trades — and it made an enormous difference.

High-Risk Short Setup – Warning Shot to Bears

If you made me pick a short, it would be against the strong level here or the strong level here. That’s not typically how I trade, but if you’re going to play counter-trend in the ES Emini, those are the spots.

I took one short at the warning shot — one contract. Stop at commissions. Touch-and-go only. After the news event, I moved that stop to commissions and stayed in. Bears responded exactly where they needed to. We got a laddering sequence down, which is encouraging.

After the News Event – Pending Home Sales

Took an aggressive short at the strong level. Nearly a 10-pointer. Rule: once you’re in a winner, at minimum capture commissions, then move your combined stop to lock in your original target.

If you did the three-contract system:

• Two contracts off at 10 points
• Runner with stop moved behind the strong level
• Target: opening price or below

Trade Card Update

1. Trade 1: Short at warning shot — got out at commissions. Tight stop, touch-and-go, no regrets.
2. Trade 2: Short at opening — captured 2 points, locked a green day.
3. Trade 3: Short at strong level — treating as a lotto, platform closed, stop in.

Three punches on the trade card. That’s it for me unless a fresh Daily Trade Plan entry appears. I’ve used my three trades and I’m disciplined about that.

Big Picture – Situational Awareness

Zooming out on the 30-minute chart: we’ve been discussing this level for two days and price finally pushed through today. We’re still under the high-timeframe range. It wouldn’t be a shock to see new lows from here — but bulls have done a fantastic job this session.

• Filled the Thursday gap
• Took out two previous day highs
• Bounced off the warning shot to bears
• ES and NQ remain outside their VWAP bands

Daily Trade Plan Philosophy

For those newer to the Micros Trader ES Trading Room — the Daily Trade Plan isn’t just a list of levels. It’s a discipline system. It forces you to zoom out and ask: where is the best place for me to engage price? Not every tick. Not every level. The best place.

I went and mapped those Battle Plan Two and Three longs last night. We got the move. Andrew got the move. The Daily Trade Plan did its job.

Here’s the reminder I put on screen every day in the ES Trading Room:

No level, no trade. Period. Make price come to you. No prediction trading. What are the break levels telling you?

Walk Away from the Chart Tonight

With FOMC tomorrow, tonight’s a great night to walk away from the chart entirely and do something meaningful. I’m deep into Lonesome Dove right now — one of those books where you just want to linger. If you’re a guy especially, I highly recommend it. You’ll recognize men in it that you’ve known your whole life.

The draw on your mental equity from watching price bounce around tonight is not worth it. Close the platform. Come back fresh tomorrow morning for FOMC.

Session Close

Not much for the final 30 minutes in the ES Trading Room. Battle Plan Two and Three activated during the London session — that was the move. RTH gave us small opportunities off the high-risk short setups, but the real money was in the overnight longs for MES Micros and ES Emini traders who were mapped up and ready.

Total Session Recap

• Battle Plan Two long: 50–80 points — Andrew’s trade, beautiful execution
• Warning shot short: Commission capture, touch-and-go
• Opening short: 2-point capture, green day locked
• Lotto runner: TBD

Tomorrow is FOMC. Keep your powder dry. Thursday and Friday tend to be more explosive. See you then.

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