'dancing' on the peddles

[snailracer]

...the natural position of your hands when standing, whether on or off the bike is the palms are facing inwards, this mirrors the hand position when climbing on the hoods or the drops. It is impossible to utilise the biceps and triceps very well with forward facing hands as on straight bars...

I often hear this, but this is generally only true for women. For (most) men, the palms face mid way to the inside and rear, something that was realised by the designers of the North Road handlebar a long time ago:

I do agree that the hood/bar-ends orientation gives better control of fore-aft body position, though, compared to straight bars.

 

[Black Sheep]

Getting out of the saddle is also more about the speed of climbing. It less efficient, but allows you to grind harder and go faster - however getting tired quickly when doing so is to be expected, so I don't think you're doing anything wrong

also, if you run out of low gears, you are left with no choice,
having four gears on a road bike means I have to spin hills away but there is one near my parents that steepens near the top, I have to be ready to stand up when I'm running out of gears!