Before the Market Heats Up, Do Your Prep

This made my mom laugh out loud!…

I was on the phone with her the other day, just catching up and going about our day – she was walking in the park, I was folding laundry 🙂

Like most mothers she asked what I’d be eating for dinner and I said that we had leftovers but I was planning to cook tomorrow, a green bean curry that she had taught me. 

Then I asked the apparently hilarious questions..

“Is it okay if I wash and cut the green beans today… and cook them tomorrow?”

She laughed a little and said “Uh, yes Hima – people do that all the time!”

Apparently, I didn’t know that because I grew up watching her cook. She’s the kind of cook who does everything all at once. Cuts onions while the oil’s heating, chops garlic while the curry base is simmering, spices lined up and tossed in one after the other.

I had learned to see cooking as this start-to-finish sprint — all in one go.

But my mom pointed out: not everyone cooks that way. Especially these days — people meal prep. They chop, wash, marinate in advance.

And suddenly it hit me.

Wait… can you “meal prep” your trading?

The answer is: Absolutely!

There are so many parts of trading that can be done ahead of time. You don’t have to start from scratch every time you sit down to your charts. You don’t need to run around chopping green beans while the oil is heating, metaphorically speaking.

You can break it up — and lighten the mental load.

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Don’t Start Monday Empty-Handed

Even though I’m a day trader, I don’t wait until Monday morning to get started. My prep actually begins Sunday night.

When the futures markets open at 6:00 p.m. Eastern, I’ll pull up my charts.. I also check the news. Did anything happen over the weekend that could cause a big gap up or down in price action?

That’s part of my version of checking what ingredients I’ve got in the fridge.

And you can bring this to your trading whether it’s futures, stocks, forex, or crypto.

How did last week end? What’s the tone coming into the week ahead?

Getting oriented ahead of time helps you hit the ground running.

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Write It Down Before You Trade

For me, part of this “meal prep” is writing my Skinny on the Mini report — my personal E-mini S&P 500 futures analysis that I publish inside the S&P Edge Pro membership.

That includes:

• Momentum analysis using RSI Power Zones, like Bull Support and Bear Resistance ranges
  
• Forecasting based on market cycles
  
• Applying my nano twist on individual candlesticks
  
• Assessing the broader market action via Gann multi-bar patterns
  

This is my prep before I even think about entering a trade.

The key is: I do this before the action begins.
That way, I’m best prepared for the decisions I’ll need to make in the heat of the moment.

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Plan Your Trading Week Like You Plan You Dinner

This one’s easy to overlook. But knowing when you’ll trade — and when you won’t — is just as important as doing chart prep.

You don’t have to trade every day the markets are open. You really don’t.

If there’s a big event like a national election, or an FOMC announcement? You might want to wait and see.

Or maybe there’s something personal — a birthday, a family event, something that might throw off your own focus.

It’s totally okay to pre-decide the days you won’t trade.

I use a big wall calendar every year and write down the days I know I won’t trade. That way I’m not agonizing in real time. It’s already been decided.

And of course, there are still days I step away — if I’m tired or feeling off. That’s human. But the point here is intentional prep.

Think of it like planning your meals for the week. You’re setting the menu. So every night you don’t have to start from scratch.

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Prep Time isn’t Go Time

This is something I really want to stress:

Prepping is not the same as trading.

There’s a hard line between the two. I teach this in all my courses — the difference between preparing your setup and actually taking action.

It’s one thing to say: “Okay, I’m watching this candlestick pattern,” or “If RSI moves into Bull Support and reverses, I’ll get interested.”

But none of that means go.

You’re just setting the table — not serving the meal.

That comes after all the signals line up, your criteria is met, and it’s time to place the trade.

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Prepping Isn’t Optional — It’s a Shortcut to Flow

Back to that curry. I did end up cutting those green beans that night.

And when I went to cook the next day, it felt so much easier.
Less friction. Less clutter. More flow.

That’s the same feeling I want for you in your trading.

You don’t have to do it all in one breath. You shouldn’t.
Prep what you can — when you can — so that when the time comes to take action, you’re clear, grounded, and ready.

👩‍🍳 Ready to Try a Little Prep of Your Own?

Let me know in the comments:
What’s one thing you could “meal prep” in your trading this week?

~Hima