I hear you on being uncomfortable in your body. It sucks, that’s all I can say. So just count your blessings.. your legs may not look like you want them to, but they work right? Some people’s don’t. Some people don’t even have legs and would probably jump at the chance to have a pair far uglier than yours. Ok, ok guilt trip over… :)
Have you checked out Go Kaleo’s website? She has workouts available there. To build muscle you have to eat at least at maintenance for your current weight or over. This will give your body the fuel to build muscle. Obviously, you also have to eat sufficient protein for building. But protein alone isn’t enough. That’s the material, high enough calories supplies the laborers so to speak.
Also, check out this article regarding your cardio question: http://gokaleo.com/2013/06/11/women-and-running/
She also hits on this in her latest post:
http://gokaleo.com/2013/08/28/a-brief-history-of-my-timeline-photos/