When I first learned Soft Tissue Release techniques, I was taught to do the movements quickly so that I wouldn’t activate a stretch reflex. Over the years of practice, I have found that working more slowly is much more effective.
I was working very quickly in the original Soft Tissue Release videos, which were produced in 1999, and are in the Sports Massage DVD Section.
I am working more slowly on the newer videos in the New Techniques/Soft Tissue Release Section.
Important: The length of time that a stretch is held for has nothing to do with whether the stretch reflex is activated or not. Don’t let anyone tell you that the stretch reflex is not activated because the stretch is only held for one or two seconds. The stretch reflex in the calf muscle, for example, is triggered within 3 hundredths of a second, so any claim that a particular type of stretching can somehow bypass or outsmart the stretch reflex is nothing more than fantasy.
This is a small excerpt from an article about the myotatic stretch reflex at: https://stretchcoach.com/articles/myotatic-stretch-reflex/