When I made this post last Oct:
https://elitetrader.com/et/threads/es-journal-2021-2022.353736/page-270#post-5468354
I looked at the June 16 IWM $200 puts and as I recall, they were right around $6. Don't hold me to that as an exact figure but its close. Even the December 2022's were about $11 if I recall. I'd have to load my software for the exact figures, but either way, I had a feeling the Russel was gonna pull back to at least the $200 level.
So this is exactly what you're saying you're looking for. If you look at those puts now, the June $200's are $13 and the December are about $25. So ballpark, you doubled your money off an 8.5% move in an index in the space of 4 months, but you gave yourself 8 months if you bought the June puts when the post was made in Oct.
And this is a great example too, because the Russell kept climbing after I wrote that. Again without my software loaded, I don't know how low the price of those puts went when it topped around $242, but I can promise you they were way less than $6, so you'd have been staring at a substantial loss for a month or so if you didn't stick to your convictions. The other thing is, back in October/November most folks would have thought a 10% on that index to the downside would be impossible. So the puts were relatively cheap.
Right now the vix is way up, so if you look at the Dec $370's today on the SPY, they're pricey. $15 for a ~15% down move from here. To make 3X your money, you'll need a 25% drop from here between now and Dec. The sooner it happens, the more you'll make above that 3X as time is your friend but also your enemy. At a minimum however, if the SPY drops to $325, a 25% move between now and next Dec, your $1500 will be worth $4500+.