Healthy Recipes & Happy Habits Designed with Your Real Life Mind
Welcome to Real Food Whole Life! Here you’ll find hundreds of easy and healthy recipes, plus strategies and resources for adding satisfying and simple recipes, and happy habits, to your everyday life.
Beyond the easy-to-prepare recipes and cooking tips, you’ll also find a sense of ease and calm is encouraged, something that’s hard to find in our all-or-nothing, “push harder” world.
Fill Your Cup + Empty Your To-Do List
Here we believe that gentle is the new perfect, so consider this your invitation to put aside the striving, pushing to do it all perfectly, or going all in (and then all out) when it comes to your health and happiness.
Together, we’ll uncover the simple habits that will allow you to fill your cup, empty your to-do list, and reclaim more calm, clarity & joy in your life.
Radically Simple, Ridiculously Doable
Here’s what you need to know about our approach: we believe in simplifying everything.
That’s why all of Real Food Whole Life’s recipes fall into the category of “can something this simple really be this easy?” So simple that we often receive messages like this from readers:
“Your recipes are like a mystery to me. They’re like 4 ingredients and every time I’m like….suuuuurrreee this is gonna be good. There’s no way just four ingredients can turn into a meal… But every single time you are right! It’s amazing. Needs no additions, it’s like a magic trick. So thank you!” — Steph G.
Yes, on Real Food Whole Life recipes are uniquely organized for you by cooking method and level of ease — so simple, they’re basically magic! 🪄
Find an Easy Healthy Recipe
- You’re gonna want to start with this collection of easiest Dump-and-Go Slow Cooker Recipes
- Try this reader favorite that’s simple, nourishing, and delicious Vegetarian Chili
- You won’t believe how quick and easy to prep this Enchilada Chicken is
- Check out the change-your-life solution found in this Mason Jar Storage Tips guide
- A kitchen staple, made in a matter of minutes, make this 4-Ingredient Guacamole tonight
A new way to pursue #lifegoals that makes you feel happy not crappy
Before I started Real Food Whole Life, I was a researcher, and studied human behavior for over 20 years. I was fascinated then, as I am now, with how people make decisions, what we believe health is, and how we form and keep habits. What I’ve learned over the years is that what we think makes for a happy, healthy life doesn’t always line up with what the science says.
We tend to think that health and happiness comes from working harder, having more willpower, and never making a mistake… It turns out, the opposite is true. In fact, science shows that happiness is far more related to establishing small habits (not relying on willpower alone), learning to be kind to yourself, and living a life in alignment with your values and how you want to feel. Really, it’s simpler than you think.
Here at Real Food Whole Life, you’ll get science-backed resources to support your health, wellness, mindset and more through our sustainable, gentle approach.
Start a New Happy Habit
- The ultimate home workout hack, How to DIY Your Own Peloton Bike
- An easy self-care Morning Routine
- Essential go-to Self-Care Habits
- 10 Simple Habits for a Happier Life
- A “T0-Don’t” List, or 25 Things I Don’t Do Every Day
And you don’t need to sort through journal articles, or go to school for psychology to find the “perfect” way to do things. We study the behavioral and mindfulness science, and do the heavy lifting for you. I literally wrote the book on feeling good, The Feel Good Effect, all in an effort to distill the small, science-backed, needle-moving tools and strategies that will help you feel good.
We’re going to help you find those life-changing quick wins to get you there without working harder, doing more, or adding “shoulds” to your list.
Your Feel Good Kit
Let’s create a healthy life in a simpler, more ease-filled and joyful way. To get you started, here are some free email courses for living the Real Food Whole Life lifestyle:
The Capsule Meal Plan
Download it here and learn more about my Capsule Meal Plan strategy to make planning your meals less stressful.
The Capsule Grocery List
Download it here and learn more about my Capsule Grocery List strategy to simplify grocery shopping for good.
Your Self-Care Routines Guide
Download it here and learn how to create sustainable, habit-based changes and find more calm while reaching your goals.
Credentials & Education
Robyn Conley Downs, MEd
Robyn Conley Downs is on a mission to help people find a new way to pursue #lifegoals that allow them to feel happy, not crappy by creating happy, healthy habits with ease. Best-selling author of The Feel Good Effect, host of The Feel Good Effect Podcast, founder & Editor in Chief of Real Food Whole Life, and founder & Director of The Feel Good Effect Coaching Certification, she believes in filling her cup before emptying her to-do list, and lives by the motto: gentle is the new perfect.
With a background in behavior change, psychology, and mindfulness, Robyn and her partner Dr. Andrew Downs have created a fresh approach to habit design that works like magic – all based on the question, “What about actually feeling good?” Together they distill the science of joyful, sustainable change, so you can clear your plate of all the “shoulds” and finally start feeling good.
Robyn professional credentials & education
- BS, Political Science and Education, University of Oregon
- MEd, Education, emphasis Behavior Change, Central Washington University
- 4 years, Public Affairs and Policy PhD program, Portland State University
- Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT 200 hours)
- Nutrition Certification, Cornell University
- Author, The Feel Good Effect
- Host, The Feel Good Effect Podcast, (over 2M downloads)
- Founder, Co-Director, The Feel Good Effect Habits Coaching Certification
- CEO, Editor in Chief, Recipe Developer, Real Food Whole Life
The Good Stuff
- Married to her “one and only” Dr. Andrew Downs for 19 years
- Mom to the girl with strawberry blonde hair who goes by Elle
- Frequent spiller of drinks, making parties particularly awkward
Andrew Downs, PhD
Dr. Andrew Downs received his Ph.D. from Washington State University with a specialty in clinical psychology. His research program focuses on examining techniques that promote positive development and wellness in individuals in various settings. At Real Food Whole Life, he with his spouse and business partner Robyn Downs to conduct research on simple, effective behavior change for your happiest, healthiest life.
Andrew professional credentials & education
- BA, Psychology and History, University of Notre Dame
- MS, Clinical Psychology, Washington State University
- PhD, Clinical Psychology, Washington State University
- Professor, Psychological Sciences, University of Portland
- Strength-Based Leadership Coach
- Director, The Feel Good Effect Habits Coaching Certification
The Good Stuff
- Seems happy and whole, despite having no Instagram account
- Chief dishwasher for thousands of Real Food Whole Life recipe projects
- Never tells anyone he’s a psychologist so people don’t think he’s analyzing them (he’s usually not)
Select Publications
- The Feel Good Effect: Reclaim Your Wellness by Finding Small Shifts that Create Big Change
- Addictive Technology: Prevalence and Potential Implications of Problematic Social Media Use
- Association Between Psychosocial and Organizational Factors and Objectively Measured Sedentary Behavior in Desk-Dependent Office Workers
- Physically Active Adults: An Analysis of the Key Variables that Keep Them Moving
- Vigorous Physical Activity, Sports Participation, and Athletic Identity: Implications for Mental and Physical Health in College Students
Become a Certified Habits Coach
Build a life-changing business grounded in helping others achieve more calm, clarity & joy through our proven habits & mindset framework. Learn more.