If one has been trading for a while, one most likely has heard the statement, the market trends 20% of the time while being sideways 80% of the time. This may or may not be true. I myself have not done the math to support or refute the assertion. The reason why I have not tried to support or reject the 20/80 rule of the market is because I define my trends different for every time frame. Thus the overall market could be sideways but “my trends” are the trends within the sideways market. That said, a trader must first define what would they consider a trend or sideways market. Then test their strategy with their trend and sideways market analysis to see if the strategy is compatible with their analysis.