When To Walk From The Chart — AM Briefing #836
AM BRIEFING
ES CHART | KEY LEVELS | SETUPS
ES Technical Analysis — AM Briefing 836 Timeline
Wednesday August 19, 2026
| TIME | CHAPTER |
|---|---|
| 0:00 | Welcome ES MES Futures Traders |
| 0:29 | Wednesday Setup: FOMC Minutes and OPEX Week It is Wednesday August 19 with FOMC Minutes this afternoon and OPEX Friday ahead. Tomorrow is the day before OPEX Friday, so keep the calendar in mind. |
| 1:17 | Tip Of The Day: Moderate Your Expectations Same tip as before. We are at all-time highs with a small expected range. It is August, low volume, no real news drivers, so moderate your expectations. |
| 1:44 | Feature: Add An Alert To Every Battle Plan Click the three little dots on any Battle Plan level and choose Add Alert to get pinged at the ideal entry. Remember to pin the indicator to the right scale. |
| 2:22 | Trade Review: The Short That Ran 100 Points The Monday short off the Strong Level went from a 32-pointer to a potential 80-point runner. Adding under the level took only 10 points of heat and eventually paid the full 100. |
| 3:37 | Stop Placement Above The London High With both contracts, a combined stop just above the London high was the proper line. That was the significant high before price slammed to a new low. |
| 4:33 | August Chop: Digesting The 500-Point Move After a 500-point rip north, expect go-nowhere slop and chop. Chasing trades in this low-volume environment only leads to frustration. |
| 5:11 | Battle Plan 2 And 3 Setups Battle Plan 3 paid a beautiful reclaim and re-tap during the London session inside the 10-point max. Battle Plan 2 was a ladder-back off today's low. |
| 5:34 | RTH Whipsaw: A 22-Point Range Day A red 15-point open candle teased volatility, then whipsawed with no follow-through. It revealed a 22-point range… step back and away. |
| 6:11 | Strong Level Overnight And Battle Plan 4 Short The Strong Level was 80 points away when mapped and played beautifully overnight. Battle Plan 4 short paid every time price tapped up into the gap. |
| 6:44 | Write-Up: When To Walk From The Chart George wrote a section on knowing when to walk from the chart. Find it at microstrader.com. |
| 6:57 | Join The Live Stream Become a full member or try the YouTube membership for fifty dollars to watch the live Zoom sessions. |
| 7:17 | Battle Plan 2 Notes And The RTH Low A minor pullback grabbing today's low and laddering back. George wants snappy ladder-back action before he takes it, with a few Core Strategy entries inside. |
| 8:05 | Battle Plan 1: The Long George Took George took the long here in alignment with a Core Strategy entry, target around 7780, managing a lotto runner. NQ tried the low and the Dow looked strong. |
| 9:01 | Goal: Reclaim 7728 The goal is to reclaim 7728. If price pushes back down, George wants a fresh, deeper Battle Plan trade. Good luck trading today. |
MES MICROS TRADE PLAN
When To Walk From The Chart
Posted: Wednesday August 19, 2026
It is Wednesday of an OPEX week with FOMC Minutes hitting this afternoon and no real news drivers on the tape. We are pinned near all-time highs after a 500-point rip to the north, and now the market is digesting… slop and chop, go-nowhere August price action. The lesson of the day is the same lesson: moderate your expectations. That means mapping fewer, better levels the night before, holding your runner when the account allows, and knowing exactly when to walk from the chart. This ES futures morning briefing breaks down the strong level that paid a full 100 points overnight and why yesterday's 22-point RTH range was a day to step back.
THE SAME TIP OF THE DAY: MODERATE YOUR EXPECTATIONS
Nothing changed overnight and that is the point. We are at all-time highs with a small expected range. The first day of the week traded across most of it, which opens the door to work the other edge… George likes that. But it is August. People are on vacation, finishing their summer, getting kids back in school. This is low-volume, horrible August price action.
After a 500-point move north, you are bound to get horrible go-nowhere action. Call it digesting the move or call it indigestion… the result is the same. Chasing trades in this environment leads to frustration and nothing else.
Trader Lesson 1
In a low-volume August tape near all-time highs, moderate your expectations before the open. A thin, slow market rewards patience and punishes the trader who needs action.
FEATURE OF THE DAY: SET AN ALERT ON EVERY BATTLE PLAN
Here is a small workflow win that saves you from staring at the screen all day. When you load the Battle Plan or any Battle Plan indicator, click the three little dots on the level and click Add Alert. That creates an alert for every single Battle Plan trade… and the alert fires right at the outlined ideal entry.
One habit to pair with it: when you first load your Battle Plan indicator, make sure you have pinned it to the right scale so the levels sit where they should.
Trader Lesson 2
Set an alert on every Battle Plan level at the ideal entry. Let the software watch the level so you can step away from the chart without missing your spot.
TRADE REVIEW: THE STRONG LEVEL THAT PAID 100 POINTS
The trade of the week was the short mapped Sunday night into Monday. On stream Monday, George said it was not a horrible place to take a positional short. The entry was not clean, clear, crisp… it hung around. But with a four point stop you would have survived everything, and by the end of the day it was a 32-pointer. Hold a lotto runner through the overnight session and it stretched toward a potential 80-pointer.
The key was the Strong Level George maps every weekend. It was 80 points away when he mapped it, and it played beautifully. There was a short lined up above it, a long lined up below it, and that level was THE key level… a clean, strong level.
Here is the sequence that made it easy if you were already positioned:
- Already short from above: This was the easier trade. You were already up around 70 points.
- The add-on: When price pushed under the level and came back up, adding short there took no more than 10 points of heat on the add-on.
- The stop: Putting your combined stop just above the London high was the proper line… that was the significant high before price slammed back under and made a new low.
- The payoff: Eventually you got the full 100 points.
Every week tends to hand you one or two Battle Plan trades that move 100 points if you are in the type of account that can hold a lot of runners. That is a good week.
Trader Lesson 3
Strong Levels mapped on the weekend pay days later. Map your best levels in advance and let price come to you instead of chasing it.
Trader Lesson 4
When you are already deep in green, an add-on can afford a little heat. Once up 70 points, a 10 point pullback on the add-on is noise… anchor your combined stop above a significant structural high like the London high.
YESTERDAY'S RTH: A 22-POINT RANGE AND WHEN TO WALK
The regular trading hours open teased volatility. The very first candle was a red 15-pointer and George thought the good times were back. Then it was whipsaw, whipsaw price action, no reclaim, no follow-through. One of his top scalpers was long six times. George was long three or four times. No follow-through anywhere.
As the session developed it revealed itself as a 22-point range, go-nowhere day. No thank you. Step back and away. You cannot let a day like that hurt you, and forcing it only builds frustration.
The Battle Plan 4 short was the easier read yesterday. Every time price tapped up into the gap, you took a short… over and over, and it did well because those were your trained spots. George also noted the Battle Plan 3 setup paid, but you had to be awake for the London session, where it gave a beautiful reclaim and re-tap entry within the maximum 10 points.
Trader Lesson 5
Know when to walk from the chart. When the range is dead and there is no follow-through, saying no is the trade… step back before frustration makes the decision for you.
TODAY'S BATTLE PLAN: THE LONG GEORGE TOOK
George walked the Battle Plan levels for today. Here is how he framed them:
- Battle Plan 2: A minor pullback grabbing today's low and laddering back. He is not that interested in this one unless the ladder-back price action gets snappy… and he means snappy.
- Battle Plan 1: The reclaim trade. Target around 7780. George took the long right here in alignment with a Core Strategy entry and is managing a lotto runner as he always does. NQ tried several times to get under the low, the low retested, and the Dow looked strong… he was very in favor of the long, and he took it.
The goal is to see price reclaim 7728. If we push back down instead, George wants a fresh, deeper Battle Plan trade rather than forcing the current one.
"Call it digesting the move or call it indigestion… whatever it is, the result is the same, slop and chop. Moderate your expectations."
COMMON QUESTIONS FOR ES FUTURES TRADERS
What does moderate your expectations mean for ES futures in August?
A: It means expecting smaller ranges and less follow-through. August is a low-volume month with traders on vacation, and after a large 500-point run the market often digests sideways. You plan for slow, choppy conditions and size and target accordingly instead of expecting a trend day.
How do I set an alert on every Battle Plan level?
A: Load the Battle Plan indicator, click the three little dots on the level, and choose Add Alert. It creates an alert for every Battle Plan trade at the outlined ideal entry, so you can leave the chart and be pinged when price arrives. Pin the indicator to the right scale when you first load it.
What is a Strong Level in the MicrosTrader system?
A: A Strong Level is a high-conviction price level George maps ahead of time, usually on the weekend. It acts as a decision point where the market tends to react cleanly. This week's Strong Level was mapped 80 points away and became the pivot for a short that ran a full 100 points.
How should I manage a runner in ES futures?
A: A runner is a portion of your position you hold past the initial target for a larger move, often called a lotto runner. It only makes sense if your account can carry it. This week, holding the runner through the overnight session turned a 32-point trade into a potential 80-pointer and helped the full move reach 100 points.
Where should I place my stop when adding to a winning short?
A: Anchor the combined stop above a significant structural high, such as the London high that formed before price slammed to a new low. Once you are already up around 70 points, an add-on can afford roughly 10 points of heat, so a stop above that key high keeps you in the trade without giving back the win.
When should I stop trading and walk away from the chart?
A: When the range is dead and there is no follow-through, like yesterday's 22-point RTH session. If your entries keep failing and price is going nowhere, the highest-value decision is to step back and away. Declining bad price action protects both your capital and your mindset.
What is the Battle Plan 4 short setup?
A: Battle Plan 4 was the day's short tied to a gap zone. Every time price tapped up into the gap, it offered a short, and repeating that trade at a trained level worked well. It was the easier read on a choppy session where longs had no follow-through.
Does FOMC Minutes and OPEX week change how I should trade?
A: Yes. FOMC Minutes this afternoon can inject afternoon volatility, and OPEX Friday can distort price behavior around options expiration. With no other real news drivers, the smart posture is smaller expectations and patience until conditions clear.
Why did the RTH open look bullish but fail?
A: The first RTH candle was a red 15-pointer that hinted at volatility returning, but it turned into whipsaw with no reclaim. A promising open candle does not confirm a trend… the follow-through has to show up, and on a 22-point range day it never did.
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