Saw this article and I totally agree.
"6 Hard Truths About Exercising"
As I get older (sigh) I find I need to exercise more, to keep playing hockey at a decent level. I've found all the things mentioned in the article to be true. I joined a gym, and go at my usual time whenever I'm in town. They track our progress. They make us do the exercises/movements/lifting mentioned in the article, and many more. We repeat certain workouts every few months, to see if we're making progress. We learn new skills along the way (handstand holds against the walls, kipping pull-ups!). I'm not sure that we start slow, but we do work a lot of form with light weight when people first join the gym, which is a way of starting slow I suppose.
Lots of different types of workouts out there, I wouldn't presume to preach about which is best. Crossfit works for me, to keep me in shape for hockey. But you need to find what works for you.
Schedule it. Do it, whatever you choose to do.