Been trading crypto for a while now and honestly, order blocks are one of the most underrated concepts I've seen most traders miss. Everyone's chasing indicators when the real money moves happen at these key structural levels.

So here's the thing about order blocks - they're basically the last candle before price makes a big impulsive move that breaks the market structure. When you see a higher high get taken out or a lower low gets broken, that final candle before it? That's your order block. But here's the catch - if there's no structure break, it doesn't count. Price has to actually break structure for it to be valid.

What I've noticed is that fresher order blocks work better than old ones. An untested supply or demand zone, or an untested bullish order block specifically, tends to give you the reaction you're actually looking for. Once price has already tested it multiple times, the edge gets weaker.

One trick I use: watch where the 50% midpoint of an order block sits. Price tends to gravitate there before continuing. If price fills that 50% level, I consider that order block done and move on - no point staring at it anymore.

Timeframe matters too. A bullish order block on the 4-hour chart is going to be way more reliable than one on the 15-minute. Higher timeframes just have more significance. I've seen 4h order blocks produce $5000 moves while 15m ones barely move $500.

Let me break down the two main types. A bullish order block is that last down candle before a strong move up that breaks structure. Price leaves imbalances in its wake, and institutions have stacked orders at these levels. Price eventually comes back to rebalance, fill liquidity gaps, and let more orders get placed. Your entry is at the top of that block, stop loss just below it.

Bearish order blocks work the same way but inverted - last up candle before a strong downside break. Same concept applies. Price gravitates back to rebalance, you enter at the top with your stop below.

One refinement technique that's saved me money: if the candle following your order block doesn't fully engulf it, zoom in and refine down to the actual momentum candle instead. It tightens your levels significantly.

Look, the market structure you're in matters. If you're seeing bullish structure, hunt for longs at demand zones and bullish order blocks. Don't waste time shorting into bearish order blocks when the trend is up. It sounds obvious but you'd be surprised how many traders fight the structure.

This strategy works because it's literally where the big money operates. Order blocks are just a fancy term for supply and demand - the places where institutions have positioned their massive orders. Understanding this changes how you read the market.