ping increase all of a sudden

Hey guys i've started to encounter problems with my internet. I always had a low ping it ranged from 8-12 decent at least i think. Then one day i noticed my router d-link dir-655 started to not have signal i thought what the heck so i thought it was the router. Unplugged it for a while didn't work then factory reset it still nothing. Then i tested my internet speed by testing router and modem at separate times and i always had a high ping of 32. When im at speedtest.net the little measure meter slightly slows down and pauses which i think is the ping affecting my speed. I noticed the lag while i play xbox.
Just wanted to know what i need to do to try and fix it because before i had no problem and besides xbox my macs internet is sluggish at times along with everything else i use. If it helps i have roadrunner and use to get 16-20mb/s and 0.45mb/s upload speed now its went down to 14 but again its sluggish and sometimes stops working.
Any help would be appreciated i want to see if i can try and fix it myself before i call time warner cable-im saving this as a last resort

I called time warner cable and they are coming next friday but i have a question
I asked the guy does ping have an effect on my connection speed and the lag i receive and he told me all ping does is how fast it can send and receive information that it has nothing to do with speed or my connection. I feel like thats a lie since i read online the lower the ping the better it causes you to have better connection. Just let me know if im right or wrong because the dude sounded like a prick man. When i connected my computer to the modem directly my ping lowers down to a 9 but my speed starts at 26 then like slows down to 13-16 which is not bad but most of the time i get 16-20. Then the meters stays going sluggishly down before it would just be a consistent drop instead of slow. Just if anyone can answer the ping question let me know because i want to try and defend myself against the technician coming this friday in case if he tries to pull a fast one on me and say oh see your connection and ping is good whats the problem then? hope someone at least answers the ping question thanks