That is the question.

I haven’t stepped on the scale in about two months now — and lord knows I ought to (I’ve been eating a ton of extra Points per week + travel + minimal workouts).

But when I finally mustered up the courage to check on the damage this week [yes, I am deliberately choosing “damage”], I was greeted with a big fat nothing: our scale was broken.

I’ve had this particular scale since 2006, so it has had a pretty long shelf-life … but we keep it in the bathroom and, well, moisture + electronics don’t tend to go hand in hand. In other words, it was bound to die at some point … I just didn’t expect it to be now — when I actually wanted to see where I stood!

Le sigh.

Now here is my dilemma. Even without a scale, I can tell from how my clothes fit/how I look in photos that I definitely have 10-12 lbs to lose still  — i.e., the pre-pre-pregnancy weight I haven’t been able to lose for three years now but would get me to a comfortable, relatively-easy-to-maintain weight — once I get there, that is!

My days of wearing a size 6 in pants are long gone … and I don’t care if I never see them again. But these 10-12 lbs are what’s standing between me and a size 8. And it’d be nice to get there … I’m just not willing to kill myself for it like I might have before Maya.

So, knowing what I need to do to get the results I want (duh — make better food choices, work out more) do I bother buying a scale?

This is why I’m leaning towards “yes.”

Though I hate to admit it, there is merit to knowing one’s weight — if the knowledge is used in a positive way. The truth is, even with my  disordered past, I don’t worry about obsessing over the scale if I do buy a new one … At this point, I really believe I’d view it as just a tool in my toolbox, not a determinant of how my day will go, as I would have in the past.

That’s not to say the numbers might not cause me some anxiety from time to time. But, ultimately, I think I know myself well enough to know that I like rules and parameters and work well within them. Having a scale would give me some sense of a parameter. And, if I’m being completely honest — and you might think I’m nuts for admitting this –I do miss weekly weigh-ins. When I’m eating well and exercising, I like weighing in. I like seeing the fruits of my labor paying dividends.

Since I haven’t been that vigilant, it’s no wonder I’ve been ignoring the machine … I knew I wouldn’t like the numbers. But I need the reality check. And so long as I am not putting tons of stock in what number flashes on the screen, I think I’ll be OK. I truly have nothing to lose by buying it — except some poundage.

Guess I’ll be running off to Bed, Bath & Beyond tomorrow — armed with a 20% off coupon — after all …

How about you? Do you own a scale? Does the number impact your day? How often do you weigh yourself? If you have a checkered past like I do, how has that impacted your decision to own/not own a scale?