Weekly options are crack cocaine for traders. I’m not even joking. They’re addictive, dangerous, and can absolutely destroy your life if you don’t respect them. But they can also generate insane returns that would make any hedge fund manager weep with envy. I’ve made $12,000 in a single day trading weeklies. I’ve also lost $8,000 in three hours. Welcome to the thunderdome.

Let me be crystal clear from the start: if you’re looking for safe, steady returns, close this article right now and go buy some index funds. Weekly options are for degenerates who can handle watching their account swing 50% in a day without having a heart attack. Still reading? Good. You might just have what it takes.

I stumbled into weekly options in 2020 when COVID volatility was absolutely bonkers. Started with $2,000 I could afford to lose (spoiler: I lost it). But I learned. Came back with $5,000 and turned it into $45,000 in six months. Then gave back $20,000 in two weeks because I got cocky. That’s weekly options for you – they’ll humble you faster than Mike Tyson in his prime.

Here’s what we’re dealing with: options that expire in 7 days or less. That means time decay (theta) is on steroids, implied volatility can swing wildly, and one tweet from Elon can either buy you a Rolex or force you to eat ramen for a month. If that sounds terrifying, it should. If it sounds exciting, you’re probably as messed up as I am. Let’s dive in.

What Makes Weekly Options Different (And Why Your Brain Will Hate You)

Regular monthly options are like fishing with a rod and reel. Weekly options are like fishing with dynamite. Everything happens faster, more violently, and with way less room for error.

The Theta Massacre

Time decay on weekly options is absolutely brutal. A monthly option might lose 2% of its value per day in the last week. A weekly option loses 14% PER DAY from the moment you buy it. It’s like holding an ice cube in Death Valley.

Real Example from Last Week:

• Bought SPY $485 calls on Monday for $2.00
• SPY didn’t move Tuesday – options worth $1.60
• SPY up $1 Wednesday – options worth $1.70
• Stock moved in my direction and I still lost money

This is why timing is EVERYTHING with weeklies. You can be right about direction and still lose if you’re wrong about timing.

The Gamma Explosion

Here’s where it gets fun. Gamma (rate of change of delta) goes absolutely insane on weekly options. This means small moves in the stock create massive moves in the option price.

Example from My Tesla Trade Last Month:

• Bought TSLA $800 calls expiring Friday for $3.00 on Wednesday
• Tesla moved from $795 to $810 Thursday morning
• Options went from $3.00 to $15.00
• 400% gain on a 2% stock move

But it works both ways. That same option went to $0.50 by Friday when Tesla pulled back to $798. Gamma giveth, and gamma taketh away.

The Volatility Crush

Implied volatility on weeklies can change by the minute. I’ve seen IV go from 30% to 60% in an hour because of a random rumor, then crash back to 25% when nothing materializes.

This happened to me with AMD earnings. Bought weekly calls morning of earnings because IV was “only” 80%. By 3 PM, IV was 150%. Options doubled without the stock moving. Sold half, kept half through earnings. Stock beat estimates but didn’t move enough. IV crushed to 30% overnight. The half I kept went to zero. The half I sold paid for the entire trade plus profit.

The Only Weekly Options Strategies That Actually Work

After blowing up three accounts (yeah, three – I’m a slow learner), I’ve found exactly five strategies that consistently make money with weeklies. Everything else is gambling.

Strategy 1: The Friday Pin

Market makers love to “pin” stocks to round strike prices on Friday expiration. They’ll fight like hell to keep SPY at 480, Tesla at 800, Apple at 180. We can exploit this.

How I Trade It:
Thursday afternoon, I look for stocks within 1% of a round strike with high open interest. I then sell straddles or strangles at that strike.

Real Trade from Two Weeks Ago:

• Thursday 2 PM: SPY at $479.50
• Massive open interest at $480 strike
• Sold $480 straddle for $4.00
• Friday: SPY closed at $480.13
• Both options expired worthless
• Kept entire $400 premium

This works about 70% of the time. The 30% it doesn’t, you better have stop losses or you’re cooked.

Strategy 2: The Monday Morning Reload

Fridays are often weak as traders take profits. Mondays see fresh money come in. I buy calls Friday afternoon on stocks that held support despite market weakness.

My Criteria:

• Stock down less than market on Friday
• Holding above 20-day moving average
• Call options under $1.00
• News catalyst possible over weekend

Example Trade:

• Friday 3 PM: NVDA down 0.5% while QQQ down 1.5%
• Bought Monday expiry $650 calls for $0.75
• Weekend: Random AI news drops
• Monday open: NVDA gaps to $655
• Sold calls for $5.50

This is basically betting on weekend FOMO. Works best in bull markets.

Strategy 3: The Earnings Volatility Explosion

This is my bread and butter. Buy weekly options 2-3 days before earnings on stocks that historically move big.

The Setup:

• Find stocks that moved 8%+ on last four earnings
• Buy straddles 2-3 days before earnings
• Sell the day before earnings (never hold through)

Netflix Trade Last Quarter:

• Monday: NFLX earnings Thursday after close
• Bought $480 straddle for $15
• Wednesday close: IV exploded, straddle worth $25
• Sold for 66% profit
• Never risked the actual earnings

The key is selling BEFORE the announcement. Let some other idiot gamble on the actual numbers.

Strategy 4: The 0DTE Scalp

Zero days to expiration. This is the crack cocaine I mentioned. Only for experienced degenerates.

My Rules:

• Only trade the first hour
• Only trade SPY or QQQ
• Risk $500 max per trade
• Take profits at 30-50%
• Stop loss at 20%

Yesterday’s Trade:

• 9:35 AM: SPY bounced off VWAP
• Bought $481 calls expiring same day for $0.40
• 10:15 AM: SPY hit $481.50
• Sold for $0.65
• 62% gain in 40 minutes

I do maybe 2-3 of these per week. More than that and you’re just gambling.

Strategy 5: Credit Spreads on Memes

When meme stocks go parabolic, selling credit spreads is like printing money.

Example with GME Last Month:

• GME runs from $20 to $45 in three days
• Friday: Sold $60/$65 call spread for $1.00
• Stock needs to rise 33% in one day for me to lose
• Monday: GME closes at $42
• Kept entire $100 premium

The key is going WAY out of the money. These stocks are volatile, but even they have limits.

Risk Management (Or: How Not to Blow Up Your Account This Week)

Listen, I’m going to save you thousands of dollars with this section. Pay attention.

The 5% Rule

Never risk more than 5% of your account on weekly options. TOTAL. Not per trade, TOTAL WEEKLY OPTIONS EXPOSURE.

With a $10,000 account:

• Maximum weekly options exposure: $500
• Split between 2-5 trades
• Each position: $100-250

“But I can’t make money with such small positions!” Yes, you can. 100% return on $250 is still $250. Do that twice a week and you’re making $2,000/month on a $10,000 account.

The Three Strike Rule

Three losses in a row = stop trading weeklies for the week. No exceptions.

I learned this after losing $5,000 in one day revenge trading. First trade lost $500. “No big deal, I’ll make it back.” Second trade lost $1,000. “Now I NEED to make it back.” Third trade lost $1,500. Fourth trade… you get it.

When you’re tilted, you make terrible decisions. Three strikes and you’re out until Monday.

The Profit Taking System

• Up 30%: Sell 1/3 of position
• Up 50%: Sell another 1/3
• Up 100%: Sell half of remaining
• Let the rest ride with trailing stop

This locks in gains while keeping upside exposure. Nothing worse than watching a 200% winner turn into a loser because you got greedy.

The Time Stop

If a weekly option trade isn’t working by Wednesday, GET OUT. Doesn’t matter if you’re down 20% or 50%. Wednesday close is the absolute latest you hold a losing weekly.

Thursday and Friday, theta decay accelerates exponentially. I’ve watched $2.00 options go to $0.05 between Thursday morning and Friday close. Don’t be a hero. Take the L and move on.

My Actual Weekly Options Trading Schedule

Sunday Night: Research and Planning

• Review economic calendar for the week
• Check earnings announcements
• Identify 5-10 potential setups
• Set alerts at key levels

Monday Morning: Opportunity Hunting

• 6 AM: Check futures and overnight news
• 9:30 AM: Watch first 30 minutes for direction
• 10 AM: Enter 1-2 high conviction trades
• Focus on Thursday/Friday expiries

Tuesday: Management Day

• Manage Monday’s positions
• Look for earnings volatility plays
• Sell any positions up 50%+

Wednesday: Decision Day

• Close all losing positions
• Roll or close winners expiring Friday
• Set up Thursday trades

Thursday: 0DTE Prep

• Close or roll Friday expirations
• Identify Friday 0DTE setups
• Usually my biggest profit day

Friday: 0DTE Madness

• Trade first hour only
• Close everything by noon
• Review week’s performance
• Plan next week

Following this schedule keeps me disciplined and prevents overtrading. Structure is everything with weeklies.

The Psychology of Weekly Options (Why You’ll Probably Fail)

Real talk: 95% of weekly options traders lose money. Not because the strategy doesn’t work, but because they can’t handle the psychological pressure.

The Dopamine Problem

Weekly options trigger the same brain chemicals as cocaine (literally, studies have shown this). Every trade gives you a hit. Win or lose, you want more.

I got so addicted that I was waking up at 3 AM to check futures, trading during my kid’s birthday party, and lying to my wife about losses. It took losing $15,000 in a week to realize I had a problem.

Now I have strict rules:

• No phone during family time
• Maximum 10 trades per week
• Mandatory break after big wins or losses
• Weekly P&L review with my wife (accountability)

The Revenge Trading Trap

Lost money on calls? You’ll immediately want to buy puts to “make it back.” This emotional decision-making will destroy you.

My worst day ever: Lost $3,000 on Tesla calls in the morning. Bought puts out of anger. Tesla reversed, lost another $2,000. Bought calls again. Tesla went flat. Lost another $1,000. $6,000 gone because I couldn’t accept the first $3,000 loss.

The FOMO Monster

Seeing someone post massive gains on weekly options will make you do stupid things. “That guy made $50,000 on GME weeklies, why not me?”

Because for every person posting gains, 100 others lost everything and stayed quiet. Social media is a highlight reel, not reality. Trade your plan, not someone else’s lottery ticket.

Advanced Weekly Options Techniques

Once you’ve mastered the basics and haven’t blown up your account for at least three months, here are advanced strategies:

The Weekly Iron Condor

Sell OTM call spread and put spread on SPY every Monday, expire Friday.

Example Setup:

• SPY at $480
• Sell $475/$470 put spread for $1.00
• Sell $485/$490 call spread for $1.00
• Total credit: $2.00
• Max loss: $3.00
• Win rate: ~75%

As long as SPY stays between $475-485, you keep the full $200. Do this consistently and you’re making $600-800/week.

The Volatility Arbitrage

When short-term IV spikes above long-term IV, sell weeklies and buy monthlies.

Real Trade Last Month:

• AAPL weekly IV: 45%
• AAPL monthly IV: 30%
• Sold weekly $180 call for $2.00
• Bought monthly $180 call for $4.00
• Net debit: $2.00
• Weekly expired worthless
• Still own monthly worth $3.50
• Profit: $1.50 on $2.00 risk

This exploits temporary volatility dislocations. Happens more than you’d think.

The Binary Event Straddle

FDA approvals, court decisions, Fed announcements – binary events create massive volatility.

Biotech Trade Example:

• XBI pharmaceutical FDA decision Friday
• Thursday: Buy ATM straddle for $5.00
• Friday: Decision announced
• Stock moves 15% either direction
• One side of straddle worth $15.00
• Triple your money regardless of direction

The key is the event MUST move the stock significantly. Research historical moves first.

Common Weekly Options Mistakes That Cost Me $50,000+

Mistake 1: Holding Through Major Events

Held SPY calls through FOMC meeting. Powell said one word differently than expected. Lost $4,000 in 30 seconds. Never hold weeklies through Fed speeches, CPI, or NFP unless that’s your specific play.

Mistake 2: Buying Deep OTM Because They’re “Cheap”

Bought 100 contracts of Tesla $1000 calls for $0.10 each when Tesla was at $900. “Only need a 10% move!” Tesla went to $950. Options expired worthless. Deep OTM weeklies are lottery tickets with worse odds than actual lottery tickets.

Mistake 3: Not Checking the Greeks

Bought calls with 0.10 delta thinking I was smart. Stock moved $5 in my direction. Options went up $0.05. You need at least 0.30 delta for weeklies or you’re wasting money.

Mistake 4: Trading Weeklies on Illiquid Stocks

Tried trading weekly options on some small cap. Spread was $0.50 wide on a $1.00 option. Even when I was right, couldn’t get filled at a profit. Stick to SPY, QQQ, and mega-caps.

Mistake 5: Size Mismanagement

“This setup is perfect, I’ll risk 20% of my account.” Lost. That’s how accounts blow up. Perfect setups fail all the time. Risk management is everything.

The Tools You Need to Trade Weeklies Successfully

Broker Requirements

• Real-time data (crucial for weeklies)
• Fast execution (seconds matter)
• Mobile app (you’ll need to manage on the go)
• Good options chain interface

I use TD Ameritrade’s thinkorswim. Worth the commissions for the tools.

Essential Indicators

• VWAP (for intraday support/resistance)
• 9 and 20 EMA (for trend direction)
• RSI (for oversold/overbought)
• Volume (unusual volume = opportunity)

Keep it simple. Too many indicators and you’ll paralysis yourself.

Scanning Tools

• Unusual options activity scanners
• High IV rank scanner
• Earnings calendar
• Economic calendar

I pay for Market Chameleon ($99/month). It’s paid for itself 100x over.

Risk Management Tools

• Position size calculator
• Options profit calculator
• Stop loss alerts
• P&L tracker

Create a spreadsheet tracking every trade. You can’t improve what you don’t measure.

Your First Week Trading Weekly Options (Don’t Be Stupid)

Monday:

• Paper trade only
• Pick ONE strategy from above
• Execute it on paper 5 times
• Track hypothetical results

Tuesday-Thursday:

• Continue paper trading
• Test different strikes and expirations
• Note what works and what doesn’t

Friday:

• Make your first real trade
• Risk maximum $100
• ONE contract only
• Close by end of day regardless

Weekend:

• Review every decision
• What worked? What didn’t?
• Adjust strategy for next week

Do this for four weeks before increasing size. If you’re not profitable on paper after four weeks, you won’t be profitable with real money.

The Brutal Truth About Weekly Options

Here’s what no guru will tell you: weekly options are closer to gambling than investing. The difference between profitable weekly options traders and gamblers is that we have a system, we manage risk, and we know when to walk away.

I’ve made more money from weekly options than I ever thought possible. I’ve also lost more than I care to admit. The wins are intoxicating. The losses are devastating. This isn’t for everyone.

You need:

• Risk capital you can lose without affecting your life
• Emotional control of a zen master
• Discipline to follow rules when every fiber of your being says break them
• Ability to take losses without revenge trading
• Understanding that this is speculation, not investing

If you’re still interested after all these warnings, start small. Like, stupidly small. Trade one contract at a time until you prove you can be consistent. The market will always be there next week. Your account might not be if you go too hard too fast.

My Final Advice (Please Actually Read This)

Weekly options changed my life, both good and bad. They’ve paid for vacations, cars, and my kid’s college fund. They’ve also caused sleepless nights, relationship stress, and genuine addiction problems.

If you decide to trade them:

1. Never trade with money you need
2. Set a weekly loss limit and STICK TO IT
3. Take profits aggressively
4. Don’t trade every day
5. Have a life outside of trading
6. Know when to walk away

The market doesn’t care about your mortgage payment. It doesn’t care that you need to make back losses. It’s a cold, efficient machine that will take everything if you let it.

But if you respect it, learn its patterns, and manage risk religiously, weekly options can accelerate your wealth building in ways nothing else can. Just remember: the same tool that builds can destroy. Use it wisely.

Start small. Stay humble. And for the love of all that’s holy, don’t mortgage your house to trade 0DTE options because some idiot on Reddit made a million. That idiot was lucky. You might not be.

Good luck, and may the theta be ever in your favor (it won’t be, but we can hope).