Immobilization periods increase with age because of decreased mobility and/or increased pathological episodes that require bed-rest. Sarcopaenia might be partially explained by an impaired recovery of skeletal muscle mass after a catabolic state due to an imbalance of muscle protein metabolism, apoptosis and cellular regeneration. Mechanisms involved in muscle recovery have been poorly investigated, and remain almost unknown in the elderly. This study aimed at studying the regulation of the capsase-dependent apoptotic and the ubiquitin–proteasome-dependent proteolytic pathways during immobilization and subsequent recovery during ageing. Old rats (22–24-months old) were subjected to unilateral hindlimb casting for 8 days (I8) and allowed to recover for 10 to 40 days (R10 to R40). Immobilized gastrocnemius muscles atrophied by 21%, and did not recover even at R40. Apoptotic index, amount of polyubiquitinated conjugates, proteasome chymotrypsin- and trypsin-like, apoptosome-linked caspase-9, -3, and -8 activities increased at I8. Conversely, the amount of the myogenic factor myf-5 decreased at I8. These changes paralleled the increase of intramuscular inflammation and oxidative stress. All these parameters normalized as soon as R10. The XIAP/Smac-DIABLO protein ratio decreased by half in immobilized muscles and remained low during recovery. Surprisingly, the non-immobilized leg also atrophied from R20, concomitantly with a decreased XIAP/Smac-DIABLO protein ratio. Altogether, this suggests that the impaired recovery following immobilization in ageing does not result from a lack of normalization of the caspase-dependent apoptotic and the ubiquitin–proteasome-dependent pathways, and also that immobilization could induce a general muscle loss and then contribute to the development of sarcopaenia in elderly.