1-What kind of brake levers?
2-What kind of calipers?
3-What kind of bars?
4-Where do put your hands the majority of the time?
A pic would help, but personally, I ride the drops, so I put them forward enough for 2-finger actuation in the drops. That doesn't mean I can reach them from the back of the drops, but quite reachable. To do this, I run a straight-edge along the bottom of the drops and position the brake lever's lower end on that edge. This can also be done by putting the bars on the floor, making sure they rest on the drops, and positioning the levers so the bottom of them is just touching the floor (i.e. 4 points of contact on the floor, with the back of the drops having the most area of contact). This works for me when I want to use the hoods, usually only approaching a blind intersection or a "maybe" stoplight. Generally, if you "fit to the drops, you'll be fine on the tops." It sounds a little like your reach is too long on the bike, either the frame, stem, or bar, probably a combination of them.
Good luck.