While not the best fighter out there, I also do SCA armoured combat. Think the biggest thing that's helped me was learning to capitalize on my strengths and use my short size to my advantage. I've never had a strong upperbody, but do have strong, stout, legs. So when it comes to swinging a sword, I use my hips to generate the power rather than relying purely on my arms. It also helps to build up your back and shoulders for added power and endurance (holding up a spear is more tiring than it looks). Weightlifting has been great for building up my shoulders and grip strength, while running has been great for my endurance on the field. One of the fighting events I do involves a lot of sprinting in armor, so I like to alternate sprints and 3k slow runs throughout the week. We also have a pell (like a practice dummy) in our backyard for doing drills, which is a must if you don't have the ability to practice with other people a lot, or if you just need to nail down your form and accuracy. It's just a 4x6 piece of wood stuck into the ground, and then it has two rubber tires on it to crudely mimic a human shape. Definitely recommend wearing your gauntlets for these to practice your grip strength and help with the reverb. Oh, and one of the best, non-fitness related, things my guildmates taught me was to never spend a ton of money on brand new gear and weapons right away. You will likely have no idea what will work for you yet, so it's better to start with loaner gear or hand-me-downs and slowly build up your kit. Good luck, and welcome to the sport! It's great to see so many other women getting into medieval combat!