Mechanical ventilation in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) enables adequate gas exchange but may simultaneously induce structural lung damage when applied forces exceed the tissue’s mechanical tolerance. Mechanical power—defined as the energy transferred to the respiratory system per unit time—has emerged as a comprehensive metric to assess the risk of ventilation-induced lung injury (VILI). To explore this relationship, an interdisciplinary team of bioengineers and clinicians investigated the components of ventilatory energy and their association with pulmonary hyperinflation, used as a surrogate marker of alveolar overdistention. The study reveals a strong correlation between elastic energy and the degree of hyperinflation, underscoring the importance of this energy component in the pathogenesis of mechanical injury. These findings support a more nuanced approach to ventilator settings, emphasizing the need to monitor not only pressure and volume parameters but also the energetic load imposed on the lung.