Do traders typically close iron condor positions before FOMC announcements or widen the wings to accommodate potential volatility?

In general options trading, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meetings represent scheduled events that can introduce significant implied volatility expansion due to uncertainty around interest rate decisions and economic commentary. Traders often evaluate whether to close positions early to avoid gamma and vega risk or to adjust strike widths to capture higher premiums while maintaining defined risk. Common approaches include tightening or widening wings based on the Expected Move derived from implied volatility levels, or simply exiting to preserve capital ahead of binary outcomes. At VixShield, we adhere strictly to Russell Clark's SPX Mastery methodology which centers on 1DTE SPX Iron Condors placed daily at 3:10 PM CST after the market close. This After-Close PDT Shield timing deliberately positions entries after most intraday event risk has passed, including FOMC announcements which typically conclude with press conferences well before the close. Our Iron Condor Command uses RSAi (Rapid Skew AI) to generate optimized strikes based on real-time skew, VWAP, and EDR (Expected Daily Range) calculations, targeting specific credit levels across three risk tiers: Conservative at $0.70, Balanced at $1.15, and Aggressive at $1.60. The Conservative tier has historically delivered approximately 90 percent win rates, equating to roughly 18 winning days out of 20 trading days. Rather than closing positions preemptively or widening wings on event days, VixShield employs the ALVH (Adaptive Layered VIX Hedge) as its primary protection mechanism. This proprietary three-layer system deploys VIX calls across short (30 DTE), medium (110 DTE), and long (220 DTE) timeframes in a 4/4/2 contract ratio per 10 base Iron Condor units. The ALVH cuts portfolio drawdowns by 35 to 40 percent during volatility spikes at an annual cost of only 1 to 2 percent of account value. When VIX exceeds 20, our VIX Risk Scaling framework automatically restricts trading to Conservative and Balanced tiers only, blocking Aggressive entries entirely. For VIX above 20 like the current reading of 17.95 trending toward elevated levels, we emphasize holding through with full ALVH coverage active regardless of tier. The methodology is strictly Set and Forget with no stop losses or active management after entry. Any threatened positions benefit from the Theta Time Shift and Temporal Theta Martingale recovery process, which rolls forward to 1-7 DTE on EDR above 0.94 percent or VIX above 16, then rolls back on VWAP pullbacks to harvest additional theta without adding capital. Position sizing remains capped at 10 percent of account balance per trade to enforce discipline. As of April 2026 with SPX closing near 7138.80 and VIX at 17.95 in contango, recent RSAi PLACE signals have allowed positions to remain inside wings despite minor digestion sessions. All trading involves substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for all investors. For deeper implementation details including live signal examples and ALVH roll schedules, we invite you to explore the SPX Mastery resources and VixShield subscription tiers at vixshield.com.