Enhancing Athletic Performance with VARK^®

VARK is widely used in sporting environments—from professional teams to academies and development programmes.

At its core, VARK helps athletes and coaches understand how learning happens—and in sport, learning is performance.

Whether it’s refining technique, understanding tactics, or responding under pressure, athletes are constantly learning. VARK provides a simple way to make that learning more effective.

Why VARK Matters in Sport

In many sporting contexts, the focus is on what to do:

• the play
• the technique
• the strategy

VARK adds another dimension:

How does the athlete learn this best?

When athletes understand how they learn, they can:

• pick up skills more quickly
• adjust when something isn’t working
• take more ownership of their development

For coaches, this creates better communication and more effective training.

For Athletes

Knowing your VARK preferences helps you choose learning strategies that work for you.

For example:

• Visual: using diagrams, watching patterns, understanding how movements connect
• Aural: talking through tactics, discussing performance, listening to feedback
• Read/write: making notes, listing steps, writing out plays or routines
• Kinesthetic: learning by doing, practising, using trial and error

The goal is not to stick to one approach, but to build a range of strategies you can use in different situations.

For Coaches

Coaching is built on communication—and VARK provides a practical way to improve it.

It creates an opportunity to ask a simple but powerful question:

How does this athlete learn best?

This can help coaches:

• explain ideas more clearly
• recognise why some approaches aren’t working
• adapt how they support different athletes

It also helps avoid unnecessary frustration.

For example, many athletes have strong Kinesthetic preferences. They learn best by doing—through repetition, experimentation, and real performance.

A coach who prefers structure and explanation may find this challenging:

• the athlete may not follow the plan exactly
• they may want to try things their own way
• they may prioritise experience over instruction

Understanding this doesn’t remove the challenge—but it makes it easier to manage productively.

A Simple Way to Use VARK in Sport

You don’t need to change everything.

Start with:

1. Have athletes complete the VARK Questionnaire
2. Discuss what their results mean
3. Connect those insights to training and performance
4. Encourage athletes to try different strategies

Even small changes can improve how athletes engage with learning.

Using VARK with a Team or Organisation

If you want to use VARK with a group of athletes, you’ll need a simple way to:

• provide access to the questionnaire
• deliver results and guidance
• support reflection and follow-up

A VARK Subscription provides this in one place.

It includes:

• a dedicated site for your team
• immediate results for each athlete
• access to VARK Helpsheets for Athletes
• tools to support ongoing development

Learn more about VARK Subscriptions

“What you have just done in 15 minutes took me five years to figure out with one athlete.”—A squash coach, after a VARK workshop.