Kari - hi!
Looks like you want to do some strength training from what you wrote...cool!
Krista Scott Dixon has a GREAT women's weight-training site that has tons and tons of wonderful tips and advice for all levels...
http://www.stumptuous.com/weights.html
Here's an excerpt from an article from Krista's site called "No Weights? No Problem!"
Quote:
So let's say you live in Upper Armpit, South Dakota, or on top of a mountain in the Himalayas, and there are no gyms for 500 miles around. Or, let's say you're a complete cheapskate and don't want to pay $50/month to the local chrome 'n' tone Fluffy Fitness. Or, let's say that you're agoraphobic and haven't left your house in 13 years. Whatever the case, it is important to remember that you don't need weights to get a good workout.
Now, I'm not talking about those idiotic "you don't need weights, you just need 12 oz. cans of tuna!" workouts that Cosmopolitan magazine advertises (I swear I am not making the part about the tuna up... it was actually suggested by Cosmo for biceps curls... maybe they were aiming that article at 2-year-old malnourished children or something). I'm talking about old-school, farm girl, Dinosaur-training-style pickin' up heavy stuff lying around the house and yard.
what every weightless girl needs to have in her wardrobe
I'll tell ya what to do with all of this stuff. Some are just cheap things you can pick up at the local discount store, while others are likewise cheap things you can pick up at the local hardware store. Army surplus stores are also good places to look for things like heavy-duty knapsacks. If you have other cool ideas, drop me a line.
old soccer ball, basketball, or volleyball
jump rope
an old durable knapsack, and/or duffel bag, maybe even an old suitcase
sand
an old pillowcase
duct tape
a little kids' plastic sled or the "tray" part of an old wheelbarrow
rope
gloves
a small towel, or some plain foam, or some pipe insulation foam
a bucket
a shovel
Check out the rest of this article at
http://www.stumptuous.com/noweights.html
Now...about spot reducing...unfortunately...short of liposuction...you can't pick and choose the sites where your bodyfat is going to come off. There's a site by a gentleman named Hussman who says this more eloquently than I:
Quote:
On the subject of fat coming off in "sheets", there's nothing particularly complex about it - it's simply that the body does not preferentially reduce fat in the vicinity of the muscles being worked. For instance, TV commercials love to tell you that if you use this or that ab-cruncher, you'll reduce abdominal fat. The truth, however, is that you'll strengthen the abdominal muscles and burn a little intramuscular fat there, but any overall fat loss is taken uniformly from all over your body. When your body needs energy from lipolysis (fat burning), it sends out a general signal to mobilize fatty acids into the bloodstream. That signal doesn't target any particular area, it just says "I need to burn fat", and takes it from anywhere it can. That's why you can't "spot reduce". Again, you'll strengthen particular muscles by exercising them, but the fat comes off uniformly.
The site above is at
www.hussman.org/fitness - just FYI...
What I've found personally regarding losing bodyfat is that it is very much a matter of 'first on, last off'. Here's an analogy: you know when you have a big ol' garbage can or dumpster that folks have been tossing trash and other garbage in for awhile? Think of the can as your body and the garbage/trash within as fat. When you empty it, the stuff near the top comes off quite easily since it hasn't settled and compacted yet (it's fluffier). But as you get closer to the bottom, the older stuff is all packed together and yukky...sometimes you have to SCRAPE it out of the can right? Well that's the old fat! Not a very scientific explanation but that's the way I see it.
I cordially invite you to lurk and/or post at the Ladies Who Lift forum (located here at 3FC under the Exercise forum) if you want to learn more about strength training and its benefits! Have a great weekend!!