When a viscous material (such as the mantle) is displaced by a force on the crust (such as from an ice sheet) it will deform - a process called isostatic readjustment. If that force is removed the crust will rebound as the mantle flows back underneath it. This doesn't happen at a constant rate as it will slow down the closer it is to a state of equilibrium (where it should be), this slowing down is called the retardation time.
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