Out-of-the-saddle technique

clearly technique is important. if you are out the saddle and moving your body up and down you can be wasting energy as the effort of lifting your body up does not necessarily convert into downward pedal force from gravity. im pretty sure ive read that standing up does take more energy but as it uses different muscles it can offer light relief to the muscles that have already been tired from using the more efficient sitting down approach. i would imagine that your riding position (saddle height, frame geometry, stem length etc) and the different muscles that relies on will have the most effect on the difference in energy use between standing and sitting.