but I am wondering if I am just not designed to run much more than that in a week.
So I guess my question is - is there a specified number of miles you need to maintain to get faster in the 5K?
Can I go faster than my PR of 19:52 on 30-40 miles per week
I don't know a whole lot about you specifically but there are runners who run much faster than 19 on 30-40 mpw. My question would be how long have you been plateaued at 19:50-20:00 and for how long within that time has your training been consistent in intensity and volume.
The Limping Jogger
I think your running is stagnating because you have not acclimated to this higher training load. You can either tough it out and (hopefully) get over it, or you can drop down a little bit and finish maximizing your gains at a lower training load before bumping it up.
"Only a few more laps to go and then the action will begin, unless this is the action, which it is."